McLaren to capitalize where opportunities appear in China

Despite ending their 2023 F1 season on a high, their car arguably the second fastest behind Red Bull, McLaren have had a less convincing start to their 2024 campaign.

The team has only score one podium finish in the first four races - Lando Norris' third place in Melbourne a race were both Red Bulls were out of contention, Max Verstappen retiring due to brake troubles while Sergio Perez was on the back foot due to a grid penalty as well as suffering car damage.

And while McLaren's MCL38 should've been strong in Suzuka due to the Japanese track's fast flowing first sector, Ferrari beat them as Norris couldn't hold on to his third place from qualifying.

Now heading to Shanghai this weekend, McLaren are anticipating a tough challenge as the Chinese track does not favor the characteristics of the MCL38, not to mention the absence of recent data since F1 hasn't raced there since 2019.

This weekend's Chinese GP is the first Sprint weekend of the 2024 season, meaning there would be only one practice session, an extra challenge for the teams to deal with.

McLaren boss Andrea Stella said in his team's race preview: "The Chinese Grand Prix is up next, as we return to Shanghai.

"This weekend is our first Sprint event for 2024. While this may offer more chances for points, it also adds the challenge of needing to maximise our efforts during the first practice session to gather as much data as possible ahead of the race, especially at a circuit we haven't raced at for five years.

"Of all the circuits we've raced at so far this year, it would seem the Shanghai International Circuit may not be the best suited to our car, and we could be met with unpredictable weather," he highlighted.

"The lack of data for all the teams could present some opportunities and challenges and we will be working hard to make sure we're well-prepared and, in a position to capitalise where opportunities appear.

"We know where we need to improve to be consistently fighting further up the grid, but as always we will give it our all this weekend and aim to be in the fight once again," the Italian concluded.

Norris added: "It's been a while since we've raced in Shanghai, so I'm looking forward to returning.

"Our last race was slightly challenging, but we still managed to get some more points. We have taken some time to go over our learnings and reset for this weekend," he added looking back on Japan.

"It'll be good to see what we can do with the Sprint weekend. The different sessions do make it more interesting for everyone.

"This might not be a circuit that suits us, but we're prepared to do our absolute best once again," the Briton concluded.

Oscar Piastri has the extra challenge of racing at a track new to him this weekend, he commented: "I'm excited to race at the Chinese Grand Prix for the first time.

"The Shanghai International Circuit is a brand-new track for me," he pointed out. "Since it's the first Sprint weekend of the season, it will be very important to try and make the most out of that first practice session to familiarise myself with the track. I've been in the sim back at MTC but of course, it's different when you're out on track.

"Hopefully, we can try and bank some more points for the team and have a positive weekend," the Australian concluded.