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McLaren’s young driver pairing Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are both happy that the team are moving in the ‘right direction’ in 2024.
Day one of #F1Testing. ✅
That's 130 laps banked! Bring on the next two days. ? pic.twitter.com/2XTFiKth5V
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) February 21, 2024
It was a good debut for the MCL38 in Bahrain with Norris finishing the day with the second fastest lap with Piastri finishing with the ninth fastest lap overall.
Norris managed 72 laps on the first day of testing, the fifth most on the grid, whilst his Australian teammate managed 57 lap.
“I’m really happy to be back behind the wheel,” said the British driver, speaking to F1i.com. “Our first test with the new car felt very enjoyable.
“It was reliable on track, so all in all it was a positive day,
“We worked through a number of items during the session, as expected in testing, sticking to the plan and executing it well.
“There are still two long days of testing ahead of us and still a lot to improve and set up, but it’s all moving in the right direction. I am looking forward to driving again tomorrow and continuing to put the MCL38 through its paces.”
McLaren saw a massive resurgence mid-way through 2023, coming back from a poor start to finish the season as the second fastest car on the grid.
Things look to be on the same upwards trajectory for 2024, with Norris showing good pace in day 1.
‘A pretty solid day’
As for Piastri, he was behind the wheel for the morning session in Bahrain, with cooler track temperatures affecting his lap times.
To the Australians credit, he still put in a good time coming in 2.3 seconds behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen who had the fastest lap of the day.
“First day of testing done for me and it all went relatively smoothly,” said Piastri.
Shining under the lights. ? pic.twitter.com/eWtE5qvubg
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) February 21, 2024
“It was a pretty solid day, and it was nice to be back on track in representative conditions.
“The car felt reasonable and I would say there are some differences from last year which are moving in the right direction. It’s been a decent start to testing.
“We’ll see what we can work through over the remainder of the test and aim to get a good understanding of the car by the end of it,
“I look forward to getting back in the car for day two tomorrow.”
The Australian will be looking to build off a strong rookie year in F1, where he stepped on the podium on several occasions whilst also securing a sprint race win in Qatar.
Featured Image Credit: @McLarenF1 via X