F1 boss Zak Brown warns of HUGE rival threat after strong showing

Zak Brown, Bahrain GP, McLaren, 2024 — Photo: © IMAGO

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F1 boss warns of HUGE rival threat after strong showing

McLaren's rival's recent upgrades has seen them bring the fight back to the front of the grid

Originally written by Tyler Rowlinson. This version is a translation.

Sunday 23 June 2024 03:00

McLaren CEO Zak Brown is very aware of the threat posed by a rival team after a recent batch of upgrades delivered performance.

The British outfit are no strangers to dramatic turnarounds following their transformation from the back of the grid to the front in 2023.

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With an exciting driver lineup of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, the team amassed six podiums from the opening nine races of 2024, including Norris’ first win of his career in Miami.

McLaren have seen an incredible rise in recent months

Mercedes' upgrades in Canada gave them their best weekend of 2024

Brown: Mercedes will not be a one-off

Mercedes had endured a torrid start to the year as George Russell and Lewis Hamilton again struggled with their difficult machinery.

However, the team brought upgrades to their front wing for the Canadian Grand Prix and they benefitted significantly with their best weekend of the season so far, with Russell claiming his second career pole and going on to finish the race in third, with Hamilton fourth.

And speaking after FP1 in Barcelona, Brown believes that the Silver Arrows’ display in Montreal will not be a ‘one-off’ after a strong outing on Friday afternoon.

“A good start to the weekend,” he said. “Everyone’s bringing their upgrades per usual. Mercedes seems to be strong once again, so I don’t think Montreal is going to be a one-off.

"I think you have four teams that are on top of each other and as always it will be about execution.

"Everyone knows this track. We test here a lot, so this weekend will show us how things might look like for the rest of the year.”

Red Bull Lewis Hamilton Mercedes McLaren Lando Norris George Russell