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McLaren MCL38 2024 Launch

McLaren F1 Launches MCL38 for 2024 Season Shakedown

14/02/2024

McLaren F1 reveals the MCL38, gearing up for its 2024 season debut with a shakedown at Silverstone and pre-season testing in Bahrain.

McLaren F1 unveiled the brand new MCL38 with photographs taken in Woking, before heading to the Silverstone circuit, where the new car for the 2024 Formula 1 season will undergo its shakedown. It will then fly to Bahrain for next week’s winter testing.

The livery was already introduced unexpectedly last month, and now we see a car that continues to refine and push further into a concept that has proven itself in the latter half of the 2023 season.

The MCL38 is a significant evolution from the end-of-season MCL60, which, in turn, bore little resemblance to the one from the start of the year. It’s clear that many aspects have changed under the hood, with the bodywork subtly evolving to incorporate a few innovations.

McLaren MCL38: Aiming for Top Return

McLaren MCL38 2024 Launch

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will thus have at their disposal a new vehicle built on a solid foundation from last year. This car is intended to enable McLaren to return to the top, with at least the potential to reclaim victory.

“It’s great to be launching our 2024 car, the MCL38, at Silverstone today,” said Zak Brown, the team’s CEO. “It’s fantastic to see our new car in its 2024 livery on the track and witness the team’s hard work and dedication materialize.”

“What’s incredible about this sport is its competitiveness, and so we must stay grounded, as every team will have made progress during the off-season. The real test to see if we’ve moved in the right direction will be the qualifying in Bahrain.”

McLaren MCL38 2024 Launch

“We’re all eager to get back to racing, but we’re aware that a long season lies ahead and there’s still much work to be done to ensure we continue the progress made throughout 2023.”

Upcoming Developments

With a solid base in place, McLaren has not rushed all the developments onto its car at the start of the season and is finishing refining them before integration. But Andrea Stella, the director, confirms they are under development.

“The team is excited to unveil the MCL38 today and see it on the track for the first time,” notes Stella. “For this year, we aim to maintain the momentum from last season, but we are realistic in knowing that every team will have made strides and found competitiveness for 2024.”

McLaren MCL38 2024 Launch

“We now have everything in place in terms of infrastructure, personnel, and culture, so we continue to move forward and build on the work done to bring us back to the front of the grid.”

“Before hitting the track for competitive sessions, we have a lot of work to do, including putting the MCL38 through its paces during pre-season testing in Bahrain. The team has done a great job over the winter.”

McLaren’s Optimism Faces Pre-Season Hurdles

“We are confident in our ability to start strong, but we recognize that there are significant tasks ahead before the season starts. There are a number of innovations on the car, but not all the areas we want to address have been completed for our launch vehicle.”

“These areas are now the focus of our ongoing season development, which is already underway. I thank the entire team, both on the ground and in the factory, for the considerable efforts they’ve made to get the car ready to hit the track today.”

McLaren MCL38 2024 Launch

“I also thank our colleagues from Mercedes HPP for their continued collaboration. We now look forward to the long season ahead with next week’s Bahrain testing.”

McLaren MCL38 2024 Launch. McLaren MCL38 2024 Launch

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