McLaren 'determined' to improve after bittersweet season start

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has insisted the team is "determined" to make improvements after a difficult start to the season.

The Woking-based outfit endured a miserable season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix, with Oscar Piastri retiring after 13 laps and Lando Norris forced into six pit stops with a loss of pneumatic pressure.

Whilst the pace was improved at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Norris' collision put him out of qualifying early. Piastri's first top 10 turned sour on lap one when he lost his front wing in contact with Pierre Gasly's Alpine, which damaged Norris' car in turn.

Two non-scores leave McLaren at the foot of the table, but the team faces an uplift from home support for Piastri at this weekend's Australian Grand Prix.

McLaren 'pleased' with Australia return

“We are pleased to be returning to Melbourne and the Australian Grand Prix," said Stella.

"This will be Oscar’s first home race in his Formula 1 career, and we look forward to getting back to the passionate Australian fans and scoring the first points of this 2023 season.

"It was a bittersweet experience last time out. We were pleased to see Oscar make Q3 in Jeddah, and we could have been again competitive in the race. However, we had to change the front wings on both cars after one lap, which put us in a difficult position.

"We’re determined to improve the car and unlock as much performance as possible throughout the season. The season is long and there will be plenty of opportunities, starting from the next round at Albert Park."

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