The reigning constructors’ champions have a chance to do so in 2025, but can they also win the drivers’ championship?
This is the last of the 4 articles that analyze the candidate for the title. You can read the Mercedes One here, the Red Bull One here and the Ferrari here.
Few at McLaren would have selected 2024 as the year they won the constructors’ title, that happened when Red Bull slipped.
McLaren’s strength has been the paintings they make in the MTC and had the most productive car for the largest number of races last year, something winner with respect to the challenge of the manufacturers.
However, it is not a better year. The inability to be ruthless has noted that the team would not maximise its merit because poorly explained “papaya rules” meant that its two drivers were opposed to more than one opportunity.
The driver preference has been reset to zero for 2025 but if one does start to hint at a title challenge, McLaren’s approach to that will be key.
The only black mark on McLaren’s copybook in 2024 was their strategy as too many times they failed to maximise their results.
Incidents in Silverstone, Monza, Hungary and Sao Paulo have noticed that the team’s chimney and the director of the Randeep Singh race will have to supervise an improvement in their strategy department.
The team has already made adjustments with the Norris strategist promoted to a more senior role, however, the evidence is in the Buddine and once the action is launched, we will see how McLaren has addressed this problem.
Of all the pairs of name contestants, McLaren has the least amount of grades when it comes to its conductors.
They are one of just two teams on the whole grid who have the same lineup as they ended 2024 with and Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have already proven themselves to be special talents.
For Norris, 2024 was a coming of age year. A first win was followed by three more and he was consistent enough to be the only driver with a hint of dethroning Max Verstappen.
His fall that the race begins where he left a qualification merit too easily, but there is no explanation of why he can no longer challenge this year.
As for Oscar Piastri, 2024 was another year of growth as he too got his first win on the board. He remains a step behind Norris but into his third season now and the Australian will feel he can emerge as a lead driver.
Andrea Stella’s promotion to team principal at the start of 2023 reported that a new daybreak has begun for McLaren and the look of Woking is bound to be appointed by the Italians.
The delight in a winning device like Ferrari was combined with Stella’s technical savour and the calm and calculated character reshaped McLaren and received its first cutlery this century.
However, the paintings are not made. Keeping other people such as Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes is a challenge that requires that a team is the most productive and Stella will have to solve the strategy disorders that hindered them in 2024.
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In the last two seasons, McLaren have been slow starters with their car not hitting its stride until the first wave of major upgrades.
With 2025 it seems to be one of the maximum competitive seasons for a long time, McLaren cannot get blood at the beginning of the season. If this same delay will take place again, as in 2024, they will play capture for the rest of the season.
As champion of the reigning manufacturers, the ball is in its courtyard, however, McLaren will have a more effective team, being careful to maximize the problems in which they are at most sensible and make the maximum of it.
Not solving those disorders and it is difficult to see how McLaren will be to retain the title.
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