With preseason testing wrapping up in Catalunya , McLaren is looking very good. Could this be the year for McLaren to make a comeback ? In recent years they have struggled with reliability issues. In previous preseason tests they have not done so well.
The fact that they have finished fourth in the number of laps with 423 laps completed. Being one of only four teams to do over 400 laps of preseason testing, is a good sign that they may have fix this issue.
Add to this the fact that they are coming off a good year last year with a return to the top of the midfield finishing fourth in the constructors championship on 145 points.
It could well be a good year for McLaren.
Maybe the extra incentive of the fact that this year marks 50 years since the death of their founder Bruce McLaren can give them that extra boost.
Bruce McLaren was a talented driver and engineer from New Zealand. Mentored by none other then Jack Brabham he would go on to score a ride with his mentor at cooper racing team n 1959.
In 1964 Bruce McLaren started designing and manufacturing racing cars and in 1968 the McLaren racing team was born.
Sadly Bruce McLaren died in 1970 testing a car he had designed himself.
With no rule changes this year and with Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris staying on, the team can continue to build on the momentum of last year. The MCL35 could very well be the car that gets them back to the top. With Ferrari not having a strong showing in testing, a good performance in Australia could set them up for a great year and a possibility of second in the constructors title . I would love to say first but Mercedes performed well in testing and look to be the team to beat. But you never know what gremlins they may have awoken messing around trying find more speed and traction.
All eyes are now set on Australia for the start of the season on 13th March in Melbourne.
Fingers crossed McLaren emerges victorious at Albert Park.