McLaren’s Lando Norris Identifies Rear Stability Concerns on the 2025 MCL39

As Formula 1’s pre-season testing unfolded at the Bahrain International Circuit from February 26 to 28, McLaren’s 2025 challenger, the MCL39, faced its first round of scrutiny. While the team made significant improvements to the car, team principal Andrea Stella and driver Lando Norris highlighted an area of concern: the car’s rear-end stability. Despite entering the final year of current regulations, McLaren has overhauled its new car with hopes of pushing for performance gains. Yet, during testing, Norris revealed that the rear of the MCL39 remained a critical aspect that the team would need to address.

Norris Shares Early Impressions of the MCL39

On the second day of testing, Norris offered his first detailed assessment of McLaren’s 2025 car. He emphasized that while the MCL39 had performed as expected in many areas, rear stability was an issue that needed improvement.

“It feels similar, which is a good start,” Norris said. “That’s where we wanted to start. We’re not looking at absolute, outright performance, and if we went into qualifying now, I’m sure we would change some things, but a lot of today and yesterday has been just ticking the boxes.”

He continued, “The fun bit will be this afternoon and tomorrow morning, but I think if we want to improve anything at the minute, it’s still the rear of the car. The more you can improve the rear, the more everything just gets better. But the rest of it feels correct, and it feels like it’s in the same ballpark, and that’s what we want.”

Norris’ comments reflect McLaren’s focus on getting the basics right before refining the car further. While the MCL39 may not yet be at its peak, the team’s strategy is to build a solid foundation before pursuing ultimate performance gains.

Stella Weighs In: Rear Stability Challenges in Bahrain

McLaren’s team principal Andrea Stella agreed with Norris’ assessment of the car’s rear-end issues, but he noted that the challenges they faced in Bahrain were somewhat expected. According to Stella, the Bahrain International Circuit, known for its high-speed corners and frequent traction demands, naturally poses a challenge for rear stability. He explained that such limitations in rear-end traction were an inherent feature of the circuit’s layout, and while improvements had been made, they couldn’t fully eliminate the problem.

“So I think the comments of Lando related to the rear instability are fair,” Stella said. “At the same time, when you come to Bahrain, I would be very, very surprised if you didn’t have rear-end limitation and traction limitation. Somehow, these limitations are inherent to the circuit.”

Stella further elaborated on McLaren’s development efforts, noting that the rear-end stability issues weren’t a result of a lack of progress but were instead the consequence of the Bahrain circuit’s particular characteristics. “They were an objective of our development, and according to what we have seen in the data, through what we’ve added in car development, if anything, we think we have improved from this point of view,” he said. “But you improve by a quantity that is never going to make these kinds of problems disappear.”

While the rear stability issues were present, Stella was optimistic that the team’s efforts to mitigate them would reduce their impact over time. However, he acknowledged that, within the confines of the current technical regulations, it would be difficult to fully resolve these challenges.

Looking Ahead: Limitations in the Current Regulations

Reflecting on the limitations imposed by Formula 1’s fixed technical regulations, Stella shared a broader perspective on car development. He pointed out that significant improvements in rear-end stability, like those experienced during McLaren’s past development of the exhaust-blown diffuser in the 2011 and 2012 seasons, are unlikely in the current regulatory environment. “The only time I saw something change as dramatically was when we had the exhaust effect back in 2011 and 2012,” Stella recalled. “But within what you can do, inside the scope of the regulations, which are fixed, you are always going to suffer the same limitation.”

Despite the restrictions, Stella and his team are focused on refining the MCL39 as much as possible, aiming to reduce the rear-end instability in preparation for the season ahead. While the issues might not disappear entirely, McLaren remains hopeful that the improvements they’ve made will help them get closer to their performance goals.

A Work in Progress

As McLaren continues to refine the MCL39, the team remains focused on addressing the rear-end stability issues that Norris and Stella have highlighted. Despite the inherent limitations of the Bahrain circuit, the early feedback from testing is promising, with McLaren’s focus on continuous improvement remaining a central theme. With the 2025 season approaching, the team’s ability to fine-tune the MCL39 and adapt to the challenges ahead will be crucial in their bid for competitive success.