McLaren is upgrading the car to help Norris.

      The McLaren team introduced a number of upgrades in Austria, affecting the aerodynamics of the front end of the car, but also announced, in rather vague terms, changes to the rear of the chassis aimed at optimizing mechanical settings.

      According to Neil Houldey, the technical director responsible for the chassis, one of the main tasks McLaren’s engineers tackled while developing this package of updates was to help Lando Norris drive the MCL39 with greater confidence.

      The British driver has repeatedly admitted that he does not feel entirely comfortable behind the wheel, making it difficult for him to fully utilize the car’s potential. Meanwhile, Oscar Piastri, his teammate, managed to do so; the Australian didn’t have any particular complaints, continued to score points, and, after ten rounds, was leading the drivers’ championship.

      However, the changes made to the car at this stage of the season were mainly developed based on Norris’ feedback.

      “Of course, in meetings with Lando, we receive much more detailed information,” Houldey said. “I think we’ve managed to understand exactly what he needs from the car, and some of the upgrades have been prepared specifically with his comments in mind.

      It’s only natural that we try to understand the drivers’ wishes and develop innovations that suit them, but I believe we’ve gained a good understanding of what Lando wants to achieve from the car and have managed to make small improvements in several areas. This will help him in the upcoming races and contribute to his progress.

      It’s about giving him a better feel for how the tyres perform at the limits. That’s why we made a number of subtle changes to the suspension kinematics, knowing that it would allow for improvements.

      Such changes do come with certain drawbacks, which is precisely why we didn’t want to introduce them into the design at the start of the season. But as the first part of the season progressed, we became confident that there would actually be no issues, so we were able to implement these updates without worrying about the consequences. It shouldn’t get worse—only better.”

      Houldey also emphasized that all new components are available to Piastri as well, but the Australian driver can choose not to use them and stick to the previous chassis configuration if he doesn’t feel they offer any advantage.