Oscar Piastri revealed the information flowing from the McLaren design department during the early part of 2023 left him optimistic about the team’s chances.
McLaren started the year on the back foot after missing its own performance targets during development.
That saw Piastri and team-mate Lando Norris languish towards the back of the grid as they awaited the fruits of the team’s ‘aggressive’ development strategy.
A significant upgrade package arrived in the races prior to the summer break, starting with the Austrian Grand Prix.
There, Norris enjoyed a significant upturn in pace, racing to fourth and showing now signs of the high tyre degradation that had plagued the MCL60 through the early part of the year.
That was reinforced a week later at the British Grand Prix when he finished second, while Oscar Piastri was fourth – and arguably deserved third – having received the upgrades that weekend.
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It was a watershed moment, confirmed a week later in Hungary at a circuit that, earlier in the season, would have seen McLaren well down the order.
Instead, Norris was second again and Piastri ran home fifth despite carrying damage for much of the race.
“When we started the season, obviously, we weren’t particularly happy with where the car was at,” Piastri said.
“We obviously made a lot of changes within the team but of course, the upgrades we put on the car, they don’t just happen overnight.
“We’re developing them and seeing the numbers for them for weeks if not months in advance, so there was a sense of optimism of what was coming.
“But there’s always nervousness about whether it’s going to deliver on track, and I think it was very encouraging that delivered as much as it did.”
McLaren has arguably been the biggest improver during the course of the campaign, with some suggestions the squad has gained a second a lap.
That’s disputed by the team, but there is no denying the strides forward that have been made in Woking.
It’s a team that has been transformed from an also ran into a genuine podium contender and, according to Norris, the second fastest team in F1.
But the car itself hasn’t changed in terms of handling, it’s simply got more grip.
That additional load has had a critical benefit, however, with the high tyre degradation that so hampered it in the early races seemingly a thing of the past.
“I think it maybe gave us even more than we thought in terms of lap time, but also protecting tyres,” Piastri noted.
“Budapest was, I think, a very good test for our car. We had similar-ish conditions in say, Miami, where it was very hot, and we were quite literally the slowest.
“In Budapest, we were still second or third quickest team.
“So I think the turnaround’s been pretty remarkable.
“There’s always been a sense of optimism within the team that we could turn around, maybe not the extent we have but to where McLaren has been the past couple of seasons.”
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