McLaren vow to continue development push in fight for third

McLaren

McLaren vow to continue development push in fight for third

One point separates Renault, McLaren and Racing Point

Sam Hall

Tuesday 10 November 2020 08:43

McLaren team principal Andreas Seidl has confirmed the team will press ahead with bringing upgrades to the track despite rivals Racing Point switching focus to 2021.

McLaren, Renault and Racing Point are embroiled in a fierce battle for third place in the constructors' championship. In the fight, Renault head the trio by just a single point.

However, while Racing Point has announced it is following the lead of champions Mercedes in bringing no further upgrades to the track in 2020, McLaren will continue to press ahead with its programme.

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"We are still planning to bring further updates in further races, which probably helps us stay in the fight for P3 in the constructors’ championship," said Seidl.

Pushed on how many developments would be seen in the coming races, he added: "I can’t say a number in terms of percentage."

McLaren will spend both development tokens available for next year on fitting the Mercedes power unit into the MCL35 and, as such, are focussing efforts on developing a new aerodynamic concept for the front of the car.

Updates have been regularly brought to the track with the team even bringing new parts to Imola that had been tested in Portimão.

"The way we work together as a team is encouraging, which makes me optimistic looking ahead that we can also make the next steps," Seidl continued.

"But we shouldn’t forget that the competitors we have are strong competitors and we simply need more time to make the next steps as a team."

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