Getting the Mercedes engine key under control before the new F1 rules

McLaren has revived its famous partnership with Mercedes for the 2020 season, having previously sought factory support from the German manufacturer from 1995 for 2014.

While McLaren slipped to fourth place behind Ferrari in the constructors’ championship, the team experienced a strong season, collected 73 more points and, with Daniel Ricciardo, clinched his first victory in almost nine years at the Italian Grand Prix.

Switching engine suppliers can often be a difficult and challenging time for teams, but McLaren managed to get off to a flying start with Mercedes after the new engine was integrated into their car, despite the majority of the regulations freezing.

McLaren F1 boss Seidl thought it was important for the team to get a grip on the cooperation with Mercedes before the new technical regulations from 2022 and to be able to confidently design their car around the engine.

“We have a great team, we have all the talents that I think we need to take the next steps,” said Seidl.

“We just need time. We are of course ambitious, but at the same time it takes time to see the results and I am very happy that we were able to take this next step.

“A very important thing this year was to get our partnership with Mercedes up and running this year before the new technical regulations come into force.

“We were able to gain a lot of experience with the Mercedes engine this year, and [it] puts us in a better position to design a completely new car for next year if we already know the Mercedes engine.

“So that was really good work on both sides.”

Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren MCL35M, Lando Norris, McLaren MCL35M

Photo by: Charles Coates / Motorsport Images

McLaren enjoyed a decent buffer against Ferrari in the battle for P3 after winning at Monza and coming close to winning with Lando Norris in Russia, but ended up ending the year 48.5 points behind.

Seidl admitted it was “painful” to lose so much ground during the final triple header of the season, in which McLaren only scored four points, but was encouraged to take on Ferrari and Red Bull on occasion.

“It was just a great season for us for many reasons,” said Seidl.

“We took another big step forward with the car in order to get closer to Mercedes and Red Bull with the lap times in qualifying and in the race.

“This year we were even able to challenge them occasionally on the tracks that suited our car.

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“In terms of reliability, we had a very good season, also in terms of the strength of our work out here on the track. We also made progress with the consistency and speed of the pit stops.

“And simply the way in which we work together as a team was clearly the next step for me, which I see as the most important.

“We fundamentally reorganized the team two years ago in terms of organization and culture and now we have created a stability that has not existed at McLaren for several years.”