McLaren F1’s 2025 season shows promise with stellar starts from Norris and Piastri, while reliability remains a key focus for the team.
McLaren F1 has made notable strides in a key area in 2025, especially when it comes to race starts. Last year, the team struggled to hold positions off the line, even when Lando Norris started on pole ahead of Max Verstappen.
However, this season, the team has shown significant improvement, with both Norris and Oscar Piastri converting their early pole positions into strong positions after the first corner.
Andrea Stella, McLaren’s Team Principal, praised the impressive starts of both drivers, reflecting on the race in China.
“Our drivers’ starts were excellent,” Stella shared with Viaplay. “Lando gained a position, and Oscar made a fantastic start from pole. Compared to last year, our race starts seem much stronger. We need to continue this momentum.”
Stella expressed hope for more front-row starts, aiming to maintain the team’s competitive edge.
“Having strong starts from the front of the grid is crucial. F1 starts are one of the most important aspects of racing, and it’s a key area where we need to ensure we have everything under control.”
While McLaren has made strides in one area, the team has faced challenges with the reliability of Norris’ MCL39, particularly with the brake pedal.
Stella acknowledged the issue and stressed the need for improvement. “We need to ensure that these kinds of problems don’t happen again because they risk compromising important results for the team.”
Stella emphasized the importance of reliability, pointing out that while McLaren performed well in this area last year, there have been close calls this season.
“We’ve had some great reliability results in 2024, but this year, we’ve had a few near misses. We need to address this to ensure our performance remains strong.”
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McLaren’s Strong Start Boosts 2025 Hopes for Victory McLaren’s Strong Start Boosts 2025 Hopes for Victory
