McLaren produced one of their best seasons to date in 2024 when they challenged Red Bull in both the Constructors’ and Drivers’ championship.
They would ultimately only go on to win the Constructors’ Championship after Lando Norris fell short in the Drivers’ while battling Max Verstappen, but it was the first time since 1998 that McLaren had took the title.
The team worked hard in the off-season to produce a car capable of going up against Red Bull, who had dominated the 2023 with the RB19.
Ex-Red Bull engineer Rob Marshall played a key role in turning around their fortunes, while a few other backroom changes by team principal Andrea Stella streamlined the team’s technical output and made upgrades more consistent.
McLaren and Norris are expected to be title contenders in 2025, given their car will be an evolution of what they had last year. McLaren CEO Zak Brown has said the team faces a ‘good problem’ that might impact their season when speaking on the Intercooler podcast.
McLaren will have less car development time compared to other teams
F1 teams are bound to the Aerodynamic Testing Restrictions, which impact the amount of time they are allowed in the wind tunnel and to complete computer simulations.
McLaren are the defending champions, which means they will have the least amount of wind tunnel time while Red Bull’s will increase this season for the first time. Brown says this could be a factor that impacts them throughout the 24-race calendar when asked by journalist Dan Prosser.
Prosser: “How has 2024 affected your preparation for 2025?”
Brown: “We get a little less wind tunnel time because we won the championship, so it’s a good problem to have.
Prosser: “Does that make a difference?”
Brown: “About 10%. In F1, everything matters because the field is covered by less than 2%. In the good old days when you had unlimited budgets, you could make it up in other areas. Now we have limited resources and the same level, which is why you saw seven drivers win races.”
Red Bull’s wind tunnel time to increase for first time under ATR rules
Red Bull will see an increase in its ATR allowance for the first time under the rules, given they rescinded the lead to the Constructors Championship to McLaren at the end of 2024.
The sliding scale rules reset midway through and at the end of each season, with Red Bull now seeing an increase of at least 120 hours in the wind tunnel for finishing third.
McLaren will see the same amount less this year, coupled with less opportunity to try out CFD items during the season.
Haas will see a decrease in their wind tunnel hours, while Williams and Sauber will both see increases to their allowance after finishing lower down the order in 2024.
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