Professor Brian Cox told McLaren how to improve F1 pace before 'ROCKET SHIP' qualifying

Lando Norris

Professor Brian Cox told McLaren how to improve pace before 'ROCKET SHIP' qualifying

McLaren have been working hard to improve the MCL60 but Cox has an easy solution to the problem

Joe Ellis

Sunday 9 July 2023 09:44

Celebrity scientist Professor Brian Cox believes he has an easy solution to making F1 cars much faster.

As a VIP guest at the British Grand Prix, Cox has been wandering the paddock and bumped into McLaren star Lando Norris as he did so, prior to the British driver's blistering qualifying lap which put him on the front row of the grid alongside Max Verstappen.

The Brit politely asked for a way to make his MCL60 even faster despite a series of upgrades in recent races giving him a season-best finish of fourth in Austria.

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Cox did give Norris the secret ingredient to a supersonic car but admitted that the answer may not be within F1 regulations.

It's really easy

Lando Norris had a good performance in Austria and will be looking to follow that up in the British Grand Prix

“He said to me ‘How can you make these cars go faster?’,” Cox said to Sky Sports.

“I said ‘It’s really easy because I could put a rocket on it and it’d go faster'. The problem is making it go faster within the regulations but I can definitely make it go faster.”

McLaren's upgraded car arrived a race earlier than expected for Norris who used it to good effect, bringing home 12 points in the grand prix.

Oscar Piastri now has those same parts for the British GP as well as a new front wing design which will be fitted to both cars.

And after qualifying in P2 and P3 on Saturday, Piastri dubbed the McLaren machinery "a rocket ship" – so maybe Professor Cox has been doing some work on the cars after all...