Mansell89 wrote: ↑10 Dec 2024, 20:18
2013 was a really poor one when trying to beat the ceiling in the final year of regs if I remember correctly. Didn’t we have one good test day but we’d fitted a part the wrong way round which caused the false dawn?
That being said was it not true that in 2011 or 2012 we were not necessarily sure why the car was fast?
Whereas I get the impression this time we seem to have a much better handle on why we have been quick.
That was a very different McLaren team back then. The McLaren of today is well organised, it has the facilities to make bold design choices then turn them into reality on track and the ability to reflect on mistakes rather than get into a blame culture that was rife at McLaren at the tail end of the Ron Dennis era.
I think people should take a step back and reflect on how far the team has come since Zak Brown was appointed CEO and had to clean up a real mess. He's achieved his goal to be title winning by 2025 one year early. If not for Zak Brown, I'm not sure if McLaren would have survived intact.
Anyway 2026 is the year to be worried about, given the scope of the regulation changes. It should be fine so long as Mercedes produces the goods on the Power Unit front.