The McLaren F1 Team have expressed their disappointment surround the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix at Silverstone as the team struggled and only managed to take one car into the points.
Lando Norris was the team’s only point scorer, despite the fact he struggled throughout with the tyres, which were a step softer than the pervious weekend and in hotter conditions. Carlos Sainz Jr. finished near to the points but was unable to take points due to a mix of the tyres and a problematic pit stop.
Norris reflected on the race as he suggested the hardest part of the race was managing the tyres, as they seemed a struggle for the majority of teams on track. Norris, pointed out that he did not expect them to be as big an issue as they were. The Brit explained that the team did struggle with pace in qualifying and it was clear they were not on top of the midfield this weekend.
“A tough race! I went forward one position, which I guess is the main thing, but it was tough,” said Norris.
“We really struggled with tyres, which we knew were going to be an issue coming into the race, but we struggled a lot more than we were expecting – or I was expecting – and that made it a lot more difficult for me.
“All of the cars ahead, as you could see from qualifying, were quicker than us. I think probably a lot of people were in the same boat as us, it was just very tricky to control.”
“A disappointing day for all of us” – Carlos Sainz Jr.
Sainz ended his race outside the points and suggested he was upset by his result as he finished in thirteenth place. He felt that the first stint looked positive for the team however, this was not how the rest of the race went.
He revealed that there was a failure during his pit stop, which meant he could not progress as much as he wanted in the race. Sainz conveyed similar opinions as his team-mate Norris regarding the tyres and how they were hard to manage.
“A disappointing day for all of us,” said Sainz. “We managed to get a good start and after a very strong and long first stint we were in a good spot.
“Unfortunately, it looks like we had a gun failure in the pit-stop, which undid all the work done before the stop. It looks like we could’ve been on for some points today with the tyre strategy we had and with how we managed the race, but again I missed out on a good result for reasons beyond my control.
“We were unfortunate, but at the same time we need to keep digging and keep pushing because today is definitely another disappointing day for me personally, and for everyone in the team.
He looked ahead to the 2020 Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix, saying how he hopes the team will do well at his home Grand Prix.
“We go again next weekend at my home race, so I hope we can recover there,” concluded the Spaniard.
“Finishing P9 with Lando was the best we could do” – Seidl
Andreas Seidl, the McLaren Team Principal, communicated his feelings after a tough weekend for McLaren. He declared that Norris took the car to its best position as the team struggled with the warm conditions.
Despite a hard weekend, Seidl praised both McLaren drivers and the team as he admitted the conditions were hard at the teams home race. He hopes the next race at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya will be better as they aim to produce better results for both drivers.
“This was a tough Sunday,” said Seidl. “We had expected a challenging race after having struggled for pace all weekend in the hot ambient conditions.
“Finishing P9 with Lando was the best we could do with the performance of the car. Carlos was unfortunate to lose the opportunity to join his team-mate in the points, after an equipment failure during his pit-stop.
“Both drivers gave it their all on track; my thanks to them and the entire team for the commitment and hard work they have put in across these two weeks at Silverstone. We will reset tomorrow and try to find a better level of performance for Barcelona.”
