McLaren confident they can keep improving in 2024

McLaren’s preparations for the 2024 Formula One season are going to plan with the team confident they can continue last year’s impressive performance gains, according to principal Andrea Stella. The former champions were fourth overall last year after a slow start to the campaign, with Britain’s Lando Norris and Australian rookie Oscar Piastri increasingly challenging the dominant Red Bulls. “For us, it’s important that we see we are doing a good job out of our own performance development and we are confident that if we keep doing this, over time we have an opportunity to close the gap.” Norris, 24, will be starting his sixth season in Formula One still chasing a first win but boosted by seven podium finishes last year including six second places. “Hopefully we will have the opportunity in 2024.” McLaren want Norris and Piastri for the long-term McLaren see Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri as their long-term driver pairing in Formula One and believe they can convince the Briton to stay beyond next year, according to the team’s chief executive Zak Brown. “He loves working with Andrea and everyone on the team, so all we need to keep doing is keep giving him the environment that he wants to be in and then I’m confident he’ll stick around.” Stella said Norris, who had six second places and a third last year and now jointly holds the record for most podiums without a win, brought a lot to the team.