McLaren introduces MCL40 upgrades at Brazil Grand Prix
McLaren debuts new front wing, rear wing, and floor components at the Brazil Grand Prix to regain momentum. Chief technical officer Peter Prodromou expects these updates to improve current performance and provide aerodynamic concepts for the 2027 challenger.
New parts for the MCL40
McLaren introduces upgrades to the MCL40 at this weekend’s Brazil Grand Prix. These parts include a front wing concept that the team expects to feature on its 2027 challenger. Peter Prodromou, the chief technical officer for aerodynamics, says the updates to the front wing, rear wing, and floor components aim to make up ground and build momentum for next year. The team must address its recent slip in the pecking order following the wins by Lando Norris in Hungary and the following race at Zandvoort. The team hopes these updates help them take another step towards the front.
McLaren currently trails third-placed Red Bull by 17 points in the championship. Over the last five rounds, McLaren scored 59 points, while Red Bull scored 152 points. The team had the fourth-quickest car during the last four qualifying sessions, where it sat with a 0.511s deficit to pole position and a 0.236s gap to the third-fastest challenger on average. This lack of pace follows the introduction of new parts in Baku and further new parts in Austin, which failed to keep the team at the front.
Verstappen doubts McLaren pace
Max Verstappen remains skeptical of McLaren’s ability to compete as the season moves toward the final stages. After the Mexican Grand Prix, where Lando Norris finished fifth, just 12 seconds behind Verstappen, the reigning world champion noted that the team still struggles for pace in certain areas. Verstappen said, "I’m not convinced that if we go back to the tracks we struggled at we’d be good all of a sudden." I agree with this cautious view because the team’s recent performance in Baku suggests that simple updates may not fix their fundamental issues.
Prodromou expects the learning from these updates to feed into next year’s development cycle. He also expects to carry the concept of the new front wing into the launch specification of the 2027 car. The team targets third in the championship, but they must first close the 93-point gap that has grown between them and Red Bull over the last five rounds. I recommend these upgrades to provide a necessary link to the 2027 challenger while trying to improve current performance.
