Andrea Stella exposes the crucial weakness behind McLaren’s struggles and under-performance

The Miami GP was disastrous for the McLaren Formula 1 team.

Andrea Stella exposes the crucial weakness behind McLaren’s struggles and under-performance

Andrea Stella (Image via The Mirror)

Throughout the Miami GP weekend, McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri faced challenges in terms of pace. They had a poor qualifying session, and during the race, the team highlighted a highly unfavorable trait in their MCL60. This resulted in their underwhelming performances.

In response to inquiries from RacingNews365.com regarding the decline in performance, McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella attributed the car’s struggles to its inability to cope with low-grip conditions. He said, “I think there’s a trend emerging. This trend is that when the grip is high, our car gains competitiveness. We think this trend is related to the fact that the lower the grip, the more you have to spend time off brakes and off throttle. This is a situation in which our car doesn’t work very well.”

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Despite initially setting their sights on a fourth-place finish in the Constructors’ Championship for the 2023 season, McLaren has failed to meet their own expectations. They currently sit joint fifth with the likes of French outfit Alpine, frequently battling backmarkers.

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McLaren’s woes on track continue as they struggle to score points

McLaren's MCL60 via Autosport
McLaren’s MCL60 via Autosport

McLaren has faced significant disappointment due to their recent inability to develop a competitive car. The performance of their MCL60 has been particularly underwhelming. The team finds themselves in a vexing predicament as the car looks competitive in some circumstances and lags in others. This situation places the drivers in a challenging position.

Both McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have encountered difficulties in effectively handling the car’s performance. The Miami Grand Prix proved to be yet another disastrous outing for McLaren. The weekend started on a sour note as both the McLaren cars were eliminated during Q1. They qualified P16 and P18, and their race day result was 17th and 19th.

The team have also blamed their old, outdated methodologies, ingrained in their DNA for their shortcomings. They have now associated their lack of speed with low-grip conditions. Having identified the issues, they are developing a new wind tunnel in Woking.

McLaren have scored a total of 14 points this season, with 12 of those having been scored at an Australian Grand Prix where only 12 cars managed to cross the line by the end. They are trying desperately to figure out a solution in their struggle to score points. The team will look to integrate significant upgrades as quickly as possible in an effort to catch up with the rest of the field.

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