British Carmaker, McLaren is the third most successful constructor in the history of the entire sport with 8 WDCs just behind Ferrari and Williams Racing. It has been the home of all-time greats such as Niki Lauda, Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Kimi Raikkonen, and Lewis Hamilton. However, McLaren has not been a successful team in the last two decades.
Their only piece of silverware is Lewis Hamilton’s 2008 WDC title in 2008. McLaren is well known for making striking liveries, the highlight being the gulf livery.
Just look at it. 🤩 (And then look at it again and again and again!) #MCL60 pic.twitter.com/xbyK9LJcbM
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) February 13, 2023
The MCL60 was unveiled on February 13, the main tweaks we can notice are a more noticeable highlight of black on the body. The black exists not because of the paint job, but because of the exposed carbon fiber elements.
The common theme in liveries this year is the presence of exposed carbon fiber. The main color, however, is orange which has been the main color of McLaren for quite some time now. Chrome is seen on the wheel caps as the new sponsor and offers a fresh look to the side profile.
Lando Norris’ helmet also features quite a lot of carbon fiber, which shows the constructor’s wish to minimize the total weight.
Fans react to the MCL60
The Fans reacted quite supportively, but some fans protested the prominence of black. One fan even said, “You missed a few bits with the paint”
I love it 😍 kudos to everyone involved in building the #MCL60. Can’t wait to see it on the track!
— Rhys Thomas (@_RhysThomas) February 13, 2023
You missed a few bits with the paint.
— Jordan Bass (@DirofnoLearning) February 13, 2023
Would’ve been better without the black. And if the blue stripe was complete. Either way, great colours, great livery. Fair play.
— 𝕵𝖊𝖓𝖓𝖎𝖋𝖊𝖗✨ (@97Jen13) February 13, 2023
Some fans said that the livery looked very much like an advertisement poster and that it looked crowded. All-in-all, the reviews on the livery were pretty tame.
McLaren’s 2022 season
McLaren came out second in the midfield in the 2022 season behind Alpine, with Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris at the wheel. They scored a total of 159 points out of which 122 were from the young Englishman’s side.
Norris got one podium spot in the 2022 season at Imola and was easily the better driver for the whole season. The drop in Daniel Ricciardo’s driving has been very obvious and that came to the notice of team principal Zak Brown. McLaren announced Oscar Piastri as their driver midway through the season, rendering Ricciardo without a seat in the 2023 season. This caused the ‘honey badger’ to move back to Red Bull as a reserve driver.
However, the team principal said “Despite Max’s dominance, it doesn’t feel like a dull season, although after seeing the results you do would think. But I think all the races were very exciting.”
In one of McLaren’s posts on social media, Brown justified Piastri’s signing by saying “We think Oscar is going to be a sensational racing driver,”
The 2022 season was a disappointment for the British racing team as they dropped down a place under arch-rivals Alpine and dropped many points.
McLaren’s 2023 Sponsors, Plans and Strategies
Bruce McLaren’s brainchild, McLaren F1 plans to compete more regularly for podiums around the season. With the new team principal, Andrea Stella, and driver, Oscar Piastri, McLaren boasts a refreshed team that looks forward to the coming seasons. Ex-Principal Andreas Seidl left to join Alfa Romeo as the new team principal.
Moreover, Stella commented on the upcoming seasons “I think it’s fair to say that over the course of the season, we would like to establish ourselves as part of the top four,”
Launch isn’t launch without a driver selfie! 🧡 #MCL60 pic.twitter.com/csnyQfizyZ
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) February 13, 2023
The young British driver commented, “The off-season has been good but I’m looking forward to getting back on track and behind the wheel of the MCL60 for the first time.”
On the other hand, the rookie driver Piastri explained that he has been in touch with the engineering and is comfortable with the simulator and that he has settled in and is now focusing on ‘getting back on track’.