2025 McLaren F1 Team

[Macklaren]

In addition to the gap to Max, Lando's emphatic "we have the best race car" declaration in the interview shows their confidence. Hope he doesn't rue it tomorrow

[mwillems]

In addition to the gap to Max, Lando's emphatic "we have the best race car" declaration in the interview shows their confidence. Hope he doesn't rue it tomorrow

He's right, he needs to not hide from it.

It'll be interesting with the run down to T1, there is of course the shadow of the Russell double tow here where Lando was fixated on only one driver.

I would like to think that this is something that the team will discuss for the race start, because it is a complex situation, so they will really need to think quickly for the right strategic answers to T1. But that said, even if we lose it, it's a track where we should get the place back. Ideally we can just execute well and build a gap to those behind us.

Tomorrows forecast for Barcelona is: Scorchio!

So we should have optimism that this cars delta will be bigger than it otherwise would. Whomever is following, particularly if we execute a 1-2 from T1, will have a lot of hot air to deal with as well as the lower grip.

[Lazy]

Is it just me, or does the majority of the team always seem unhappy when Piastri does better?

It’s very much like they always want Norris to win.

They've got the data, I think they know Lando is the better driver.

[mwillems]

Is it just me, or does the majority of the team always seem unhappy when Piastri does better?

It’s very much like they always want Norris to win.

They've got the data, I think they know Lando is the better driver.

And where did you pull that from lol

Lando did a lot of work to embed with the team. Staying late with the engineers, working with them on the car and taking the blame on himself for issues. He's worked really hard to get the team behind him. But I also do think that they fully support Oscar, however, I do see a bit more excitement for Lando and I suspect these facts will be a part of it.

[PikeStance]

Norris was always a better race-pace guy than one one-lap guy. He is not good at pushing the limits while Piastri is. I would not be surprised if Norris has the best race pace tomorrow. It will come down to getting through the first two turns cleanly.

[FittingMechanics]

Great job by the team. The gap would have been much bigger if the clouds did not cool down the track. Just look how much Verstappen improved from his first Q3 lap (48C) to second lap (43C).

Super happy we demolished the TD talk.
Tomorrow whatever happens, happens. Even a crash.

But I hope we execute well and run off into the distance. 1-2 is most important.

[GrizzleBoy]

Lando needs to do the right thing and take Max out into T1 for all the championships.

[ringo]

Russell will do a good enough job of that.

Lando can win even if he is P2 after lap 1. Oscar has some tricks up his sleeve for Q3 in terms of racing lines and tyre prep. But he's still lacking on race pace. This race is a slogging one. Tyre deg and traffic decides who wins.

[venkyhere]

Great job by the team. The gap would have been much bigger if the clouds did not cool down the track. Just look how much Verstappen improved from his first Q3 lap (48C) to second lap (43C).

Actually, everyone improved from Q1->Q2->Q3 due to the falling temp as well as the track improvement.
The top five grid starters all improved by almost 1 second from Q1 to Q3. However, from Q2 to Q3, they were all around the 1/2 second mark, except Norris, who improved only by 3 tenths.
You can discount Max's first Q3 run, it was full of mistakes.

[FittingMechanics]

Does anyone know whether copium factories are shut down or what is happening today?

All day yesterday I was reading that McLaren used higher engine modes, that they pushed harder, that they are understeering where they used to be on rails, that their superior balance is gone.

And now? Time to accept reality.

McLaren may not win tomorrow if it goes that way but the facts are the development team is superior to other teams and the car is great, whatever TD they force into action. Second flexi wing TD and McLaren still on top!

[BMMR61]

Accept reality? No way! There's a team principle that wants people to believe that if his team aren't dominating, then others are cheating. The McLaren story from 2023 to present is one of continual, consistent development and updates that always deliver, no backward steps. This demonstrates the engineering team understand all the elements they are working with. Impressive. It won't always be so, but until then...... enjoy.

[bauc]

What a great qualy, I hope that we will get a clean start tomorrow, and then let the best man win.

[deargodhelpme]

Norris was always a better race-pace guy than one one-lap guy. He is not good at pushing the limits while Piastri is. I would not be surprised if Norris has the best race pace tomorrow. It will come down to getting through the first two turns cleanly.

I don't know about that. By Lando's own admission qualifying has always been his biggest strength...until this year. I get where you're coming from, though. Lando knows how to manage his tyres, that's for sure.

[M840TR]

simply stunning, this car did not get any significant upgrade since Australia (apart of diffuser tweak, if my memory served me well). But it is still 0.3s faster in qualifying (by race 9) than RedBull (and the rest) who brought multiple upgrade packages.
0

Test items. No meaningful upgrades so far measures winglets around rear brake ducts and rear/beam wings.

[Henri]

Is it just me, or does the majority of the team always seem unhappy when Piastri does better?

It’s very much like they always want Norris to win.

They've got the data, I think they know Lando is the better driver.

Lies oscar is much better this year