McLaren are going into 2025 with a ‘swagger’

McLaren proved last year that they could deliver a sustained tilt at the title by overhauling Red Bull to win their first Constructors’ Championship since 1998.

Had they been firing on all cylinders from the first round in Bahrain, rather than when they brought an upgrade to race five in Miami (which yielded Lando Norris’ first Grand Prix victory), they could well have made it a championship double with the Drivers’ title.

So, it’s unsurprising that the mood at Silverstone on Thursday, when they sent out their 2025 challenger the MCL39 for the first time on a damp and chilly track was buoyant. The team have something of a swagger, as Oscar Piastri put it – a sensation that comes hand in hand with success.

And that’s why they are laser-focused on going one better this year and that’s not just defending their Constructors’ Championship but also bringing home a first Drivers’ title since Lewis Hamilton clinched the prized piece of silverware back in 2008.

Formula 1 header templates (11).png — The MCL39 hit the track at Silverstone on Thursday

“That’s our objective (to fight for the titles from the first race),” said Piastri, when we caught up in The Wing building at Silverstone with the sound of Norris pounding around the track just a few metres away.

“Last season, the first few races were a little more difficult than we would have liked and then we came on strong from Miami with that first upgrade. Hopefully we can start the year on that note instead of having to wait a few races.

“But we know we have a lot of competition. Even last season wasn’t a dominant year for us. We’ve got a lot of competition. Yes we had an incredibly good car but in different conditions Ferrari were strong, in other conditions Mercedes were strong and Red Bull were incredibly strong at the start of last season.

“We can’t be complacent but it’s nice to go in with the confidence of being champions – and I guess in some ways a little bit of the swagger that comes with having that title. Everyone is out to try and get that off us, but I’m feeling confident we’re in a good place as a team.”

FIRST LOOK: McLaren's new MCL39 car hits the track for the first time ahead of 2025 season

'We have not run out of steam'

A lot will depend on whether the car is good enough – but McLaren’s development trend over the last two seasons suggest they will do. They’ve gone from the back of the field at the start of 2023 to world champions 20 months later.

The key was that every upgrade package that came to the track – and the development over the winter – delivered in a manner that was unmatched by any of their rivals.

Oscar Piastri previews the 2025 Formula 1 season

“So the 2025 car on the paper should be a decent step forward,” said Team Principal Andrea Stella. “But if I look from far enough, I think this step forward is actually on a linear trend to some of the other upgrades or developments that we took in 2023 – Austria, Singapore – and then in 2024, for instance, with the Miami, and then later on Mexico and Austin.

“I think this 2025 car, at least for what we see in our numbers, should be just along this line, which is good news itself. It means we have not run out of steam.”

TECH ANALYSIS: How McLaren's MCL39 has benefitted from an 'aggressive' evolution approach

If the car is quick straight out of the box, then it’ll be down to the drivers to get the job done – and based on the job both did last year, it’s no wonder Stella believes they have what it takes to deliver when it matters this year.

Norris stepped up his game in a big way in 2024 – and that led to a championship chase of Max Verstappen all the way until Las Vegas, round 22 of 24. Over the course of the year, he secured his first Grand Prix win – one of four – and nailed eight pole positions. The latter is particularly impressive as qualifying was what he wanted to improve the most on.

What makes him such a formidable force this year is that he seems to have found a new confidence in himself, something he admitted for the first time when speaking at the 2024 finale in Abu Dhabi. Last year, he proved to himself that he could compete at the sharp end consistently, even if he did doubt himself along the way.

'I'm ready to go against Max' - Lando Norris previews the 2025 season

“It was a noticeable point for me, just because it was something I had struggled with since racing and being in Formula 1,” he said of lacking confidence in himself, when we speak after he’s tested the MCL39 for the first time.

“Every driver is different. There will be plenty of drivers who come in and say, ‘I’m going to do it this year’ and all that stuff. Everyone has their own way of saying things to themselves and saying stuff to the media.

GALLERY: McLaren's 2025 car makes track debut during filming day at Silverstone

“I only say stuff that I believe in. Simple as that. Sometimes that’s not a very high expectation, sometimes it is, sometimes it’s not. But it’s always the truth.

“Through last year, I had those good moments where I was like – and not just because it was after a good race or a win, sometimes it was after a tougher race where Max got the better of me or something like that – I had that little kick of ‘OK, I can do this, I can race against him, I can fight at the front.

I can do this, I can race against him [Verstappen], I can fight at the front.
Lando Norris

“I have always felt like I have to experience something to really make myself believe it. I can’t answer something until I know it. That’s not always the correct mentality to have – and the right thought of things, but that’s me, and that’s how I work.

“Some things aren’t great, some things are great. It makes me me, and that’s why I’m very good in certain areas. But last year was that moment – where I was like, ‘I can do it – which is why I said what I said at the last race, not because it was overconfidence or next year is my year in an arrogant way.

“It was just I felt like I can compete against these guys and I can fight at the top. But that never goes without the saying of I know I’ve got to work harder and work more on those things. It’s never an easy answer, it’s always complicated. Last year was a good year for realising that form myself.”

'You can talk all you want – but I need to go out and do it'

Stella said Norris’ “ability to grow” was “impressive”, referencing the way he learned and adapted to racing Verstappen in Austria, Austin and then Mexico last year. It’s clear that Norris has learned from those encounters, which in turn will better prepare him to go wheel-to-wheel, no matter who it is, this season and beyond.

“Some of it, I had to live those moments to learn,” he said of those pinch points with Verstappen in 2024. “You learn a lot more from those moments than you do an easy win or the success. If I look back to Zandvoort or Abu Dhabi, they are great moments but you learn a lot less doing that than when I crashed with Max, we had Mexico and Austin.

AUSTIN, TEXAS - OCTOBER 19: Pole position qualifier Lando Norris of Great Britain and McLaren talks — Norris was Verstappen's closest challenger in 2024

“Tough moments were definitely good things in order to prepare for this year, as I’m sure there’ll be more of the same, but it wasn’t always that I did a terrible job.

“It was just that sometimes I made a slightly wrong decision – in Austria, as much as I didn’t want to and I didn’t think it was my problem, if I moved my car one centimetre more to the left, would we have avoided contact? There’s too many what ifs, but yeah, I learned from those things.

“But again, you learn from it, but you’ve still got to go out and do it. As much as I can talk, and people can talk, I still need to go out and do it every weekend.

“I know what I need to focus on. I know it’s one of those things I need to improve on but I need to go out on track this year and be quick, do these things, not make mistakes, put up a good fight against Max. You can talk all you want – but I need to go out and do it.”

Piastri's own capabilities

While Norris is considered one of the favourites – if not the favourite – for the title this year by many paddock insiders, he’s aware his team mate Piastri “is capable of winning the World Championship”.

The Australian had a stellar second season in the sport last year, securing his first victory in Hungary and following that up with another triumph in Baku. He’s well aware he has plenty more to learn, but it’s clear he feels he’s tightened things up to the extent he is ready to put up a fight for the title.

KIGALI, RWANDA - DECEMBER 13: In this handout provided by Federation Internationale de l'Automobile — Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris have already helped deliver McLaren a Constructors' title - but have their own championship ambitions

“As a team we are in a strong place,” says Piastri. “We have gained some confidence and gained experience in the last 12 months of how to be a race-winning and championship-winning team again.

“For myself, being part of that environment is incredibly exciting. I feel like I have all the tools at my disposal now, which I don’t think I necessarily felt 12 months ago.

“It’s now about making sure I use them all the time and put my best foot forward as often as I can. I’ve got confidence from getting wins under my belt – so I know I can do it. It’s just about trying to do that more often.”

He added: “I’m confident I’ve got what it takes this year and hopefully we can come out with a strong car at the beginning of the season and start our year on the right foot.”

I’m confident I’ve got what it takes this year.
Oscar Piastri

McLaren have a new weapon in their armoury this year – and that’s confidence in their ability to get the job done after they won the Constructors’ Championship last year.

Norris has a newfound confidence and a strategy to race friend and rival Verstappen wheel-to-wheel. And Piastri has levelled up to the point where he feels ready to fight for a championship.

That’s a pretty potent combination that will take a lot to be reckoned with if the MCL39 turns out to be even better than its predecessor.