S Poddar
It has been a significant resurgence for McLaren through the Formula 1 ranks, and even its boss, Zak Brown, has been surprised by that very revival. With just the final ten races of the season remaining, McLaren now finds itself 42 points behind Red Bull in the constructors’ championship. Brown readily admits he did not think his team would be able to push Red Bull so hard this year.
Brown was surprised by it, considering how the season had gone so far up until that point, with Red Bull dominating and Mercedes performing well, but he said he had foreseen McLaren gradually catching up. “I thought we might get where we are now by 2025. I didn’t think we would be here in 2024. But I’m not complaining,” he said.
What started off as a large deficit in points for McLaren earlier in the season now closes significantly, especially after Lando Norris sealed his first win at the Miami Grand Prix. Since then, both Norris and teammate Oscar Piastri are dipping consistently onto the podium, with Piastri also claiming his first grand prix win. This shift has come at the same time that Red Bull’s performance has declined, particularly with driver Sergio Perez.
Brown feels that this will be a dogfight right to the end of the season and much will depend on Perez’s form. “If he can perform as he’s capable of performing, it’s going to be a hard fight. If he continues to perform as he has this year, we have a pretty good chance,” said Brown.
In the drivers’ championship, it has an even greater challenge because Norris lies 78 points behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. Norris and the team have made small mistakes that Brown considers to be part of the learning process. He cited starts in Spain, Hungary, and Belgium, and strategy calls at Silverstone, as examples of where they’d gone wrong. “We wouldn’t make these mistakes again. We’re learning,” he said.
It was structurally-based development after Andrea Stella took over the role of team principal in December 2022 following the exit of Andreas Seidl. Brown accelerated the transition, and among the major personnel changes is the technical director, James Key, and head of aerodynamics Tony Salter, who both resigned.
Under Stella’s leadership, McLaren turned around dramatically. As much as they had a slow start in 2023 because of design errors from the previous era, their mid-year upgrades got them into the pack at the front behind Red Bull. Further upgrades at Miami put McLaren squarely in direct competition with Red Bull.
Brown feels that Stella’s leadership has unlocked the team’s potential. “Andrea communicates very well. He listens very well. He’s very hard-working. He’s very technical. He leads by example. All the traits you would want in a great leader,” Brown said. His promotion was a considered decision, showing methodical and thoughtfulness on Stella’s part.
With McLaren pushing forward, Brown does not lose his optimism over the trajectory of the team and feels they can fight at the top of the grid.
