McLaren Boss Andrea Stella Admits Team Not Yet Winning on Pure Pace, Upgrades Coming Soon

McLaren Team Principal Acknowledges Need for Performance Improvements

By [Author’s Name] | Autosport

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has conceded that his team is still not in a position to win Formula 1 races solely on outright performance, revealing upgrades will arrive in the next rounds. The Woking-based squad has built on a positive end to last term that comprised a remarkable mid-season turnaround from Q1 eliminations to regular podium results.

Lando Norris capitalized on the initial upgrades to the MCL38, seizing his elusive maiden win in Miami and pursuing Max Verstappen’s Red Bull to the end at Imola. The Briton has logged five podiums from the opening nine races this season, with teammate Oscar Piastri splitting the Ferrari cars to come home second in Monaco.

Norris insisted he should’ve triumphed in Canada as his lead in mixed conditions was squandered when McLaren was indecisive when pitting under a Safety Car. However, Stella, who claimed Norris’ advantage wouldn’t have delivered a guaranteed win, contends holding regrets over a second place validates McLaren’s progress.

“This sort of little disappointment for a victory that was possible is actually a testament to the fact that the team has come a long way and we are now regular podium contenders or at times even victory contenders.”

Stella acknowledged that McLaren still relies on circumstances to secure a win, emphasizing they need to make the car faster to be in a position to chase victory independent of track conditions or characteristics.

“When we were in dry conditions, Mercedes was faster than us… So we’re still not in a position where we can gain the victory out of outright performance,” he said.

McLaren capitalized on Ferrari’s disastrous weekend to close the gap in the championship, but that came amid the backdrop of Mercedes being a renewed contender. The German marque has adopted an aggressive development process to make inroads into the top three and has warned that pattern will continue into the next races.

However, Stella divulged that McLaren might have new parts on the car as soon as the Spanish Grand Prix, though he ruled out seismic packages like last season.

“For the coming races, we will have some upgrades, but they won’t be a single kind of big upgrade like we have seen over the last 12 months,” he revealed. “This is more some individual components where we found a little bit of performance and rather than waiting to deploy everything together once ready we take it track side.”

Stella believes the renewed confidence that has derived from McLaren’s return to being a consistent competitor at the top can inspire the team to greater heights.

“Confidence growing in team? Well, the confidence grows, but you don’t do very much with the confidence. Ultimately, the confidence needs to help design new parts,” he said.

As McLaren continues to push forward in the F1 grid, fans can expect to see more exciting developments in the coming races. Will they be able to keep up with the top three teams and secure a win on pure pace? Only time will tell.

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