Lehdistötiedotteet - McLaren Racing - Season 17 Review

McLaren Racing - Season 17 Review

Could this be the season McLaren took it to Red Bull?

After the spectacular end to season 16 would season 17 be able to produce the same sort of entertainment? Would season 17 be the maiden championship year for Rocco Rapido or would it be the year of Grosjean Jr for the second time or would we see and outsider steal the glory? Here's how season 17 happened...

Round 1 and the season started off in Australia very much how last season ended. A tight qualifying session with Red Bull just pipping McLaren and Jordan snapping at the heels of the big 2. A first lap mistake cost McLarens number 2 a good result but Rapido was right there with Grosjean Jr a they finished 1 - 2

Round 2 at Sepang is a track that has never really suited the Mclaren as the results of the race showed that with Rocco in 5th and Guido in 7th, already it looked like the Red Bulls would be once again the cars to beat and Grosjean Jr had no intention of letting his title challenge slip at all.

Round 3 saw the team find better results in China but they were still unable to topple the Red Bull from the top of the list with Rocco finishing behind Grosjean Jr in 2nd and Guido finishing in 6th. Again a mistake from Di Rado costing him a better position and he would be hoping for improvements in the upcoming rounds in an attempt to support the team championship effort

Round 4 in Bahrain was a race to forget and even at the early stage in the championship it was looking like an uphill struggle to challenge for the drivers and teams title as the team suffered a double DNF with Rocco making a rare mistake and ending his race in the gravel and then Guido suffering a cruel transmission failure whilst in 2nd place. Rapido was 44 points behind in the title race and the team 60 points.

Round 5 and the Spanish GP was a huge relief after the previous rounds result with the McLaren cars taking a 1 - 2 finish to the delight of the team. Guido taking the top spot backed up by a good run from Rocco after damage to the car was sustained on his inlap but nonetheless a fantastic result as they attempted to get their championship fight back on track.

Round 6 would see the Monaco race throw up it's usual safety car unpredictability and this would in turn ruin the race for the McLaren team as the timing cost both drivers solid results. Di Rado managed to salvage 6th place whilst Rocco Rapido could only gain a solitary point in 10th. All this caused by an ill timed safety car as the McLaren boys ran a slightly different strategy on a track that is notoriously hard to overtake on.

Round 7 in Canada started badly in qualifying as Di Rado could only manage 11th on the grid whilst his team mate bagged 3rd. The race saw Rocco climb 1 place into second again behind the Red Bull of Grosjean Jr whilst Di Rado's weekend didn't get any better finishing 14th after an ambitious 1 stop strategy was ruined by the safety car coming onto the track.

Round 8 from Austria was a welcome return to the top step of the podium for Rocco Rapido after he capitalised on a poor weekend from championship leader Grosjean Jr. Would this be the start of a comeback fight for the championship? Di Rado could only manage 7th place after starting in 5th.

Round 9 was the home GP for McLaren and it was the scene of another win for the team which after last years disaster was dedicated to the Silverstone fans. Rocco topping the podium for his second win in succession and Guido bringing his car home in 6th place. Despite the win there was still a bit challenge for Rocco to take the fight to championship leader Grosjean Jr.

Round 10 from Germany saw Guido fly the McLaren flag as he took 2nd place after a good race in which Rocco made a mistake costing him 4 places and seeing him finish in 6th place as Grosjean Jr once again took the win. The title gap was 44 points and the teams championship had the same gap.

Round 11 and the McLaren boys started the second half of the season in Hungary in winning fashion with Rapido recording his 4th win of the season with team mate Di Rado finishing 4th sandwiching both Red Bull cars.

Round 12 saw the teams take on the formidable Spa circuit and the conquerors were once again the Red Bull cars. The McLarens taking 3rd and 4th behind. This result saw Rocco now move into 2nd in the championship and McLaren move into 2nd in the teams championship as they tried to secure a later season fight for the titles.

Round 13 saw victory in Italy for Rocco Rapido but once again he was shadowed by Grosjean. 4th place was Guido's but with more consistency appearing in the team they were now keeping the pressure on the Red Bull cars. Any mistakes and McLaren would be right on the tail.

Round 14 was another perfect result for the team with a 1 - 2 finish in Singapore. Rocco leading the charge and with Grosjean only in 4th and Montferrand not in the top 5 it was now looking like McLaren could be back in the title fight. Rocco was now only 24 points behind the leader Grosjean Jr and McLaren were only 10 points behind Red Bull in the teams championship. Game on?

Round 15 in Japan was average for McLaren as Rocco was 3rd and Di Rado 5th. Rocco losing ground to the championship leader as Grosjean Jr took the victory but the result did no damage to the teams battle as the gap remained the same. The race handicapped McLaren as the wet weather isn't favourable to their drivers.

Round 16 was the Russian round and it was a 2nd and 3rd finish for the McLaren team with Rocco leading the podium charge but with Grosjean Jr 1st and Montferrand 4th ground was still lost on the title charges although Di Rado was securing himself 4th place in the championship which was encouraging for the Italian.

Round 17 in America the McLarens once again played second fiddle to the Red Bulls even though a good result of 3rd for Rocco and 4th for Guido was achieved in what was quite frankly a boring race. In an excellent display of driving around in a circuit and doing nothing else this race was a winner! With the points setup in the championship the next race could be vital

Round 18 was indeed vital as it saw the championship secured in Mexico by Grosjean Jr. McLaren had fought well in the second half of the season but 2nd place finish for Rapido wasn't enough to keep the title race and everything pointed to 3 races in the season costing Rapido a real title shot. Di Rado finished 4th and barring a disaster in the last 2 races looked secure for his 4th place finish in the championship. The teams championship was still open albeit it now looked a long shot.

Round 19 and McLaren locked out the front row of the Brazilian grid to show just what they could do and if were not for a mistake from the Italian pole sitter Di Rado he may well have taken his 1st win of the season. Instead it was team mate Rapido securing his 6th win of the campaign. Di Rado's 4th place secured him 4th in the championship which meant that the last race was a simple case of Red Bull finishing and claiming the teams title.

Round 20 was a race that summed up the year of McLaren really. Di Rado taking 3rd place in the UAE and Rapido ending his race on lap 2 in a tyre wall. That early season glitch costing Rapido the title shot he had wished for and with that Red Bull took the teams championship.


Summary

So overall Rocco Rapido finished the season in 2nd place which replicated his achievement from the previous season and Guido Di Rado finished his season in 4th place which his is joint best finish.

The teams championship once again saw 2nd place for McLaren which is their equal best.

With the expectation in the team being so high the team will be disappointed they did not claim a title but they must remember that their achievements are still a fantastic result for the team and with the car development for season 18 nearly finished they will be ready to fight again for the title and for a little bit more consistency from both drivers and a little more luck maybe season 18 will be their season for glory.



McLaren would like to say a big thankyou to all of their fans and importantly to all of their voting point contributors for all of your help this season, without you the team would be in a worse position than it is now


So from me MrLeg it's goodbye to season 17 and we wish you the best of luck for season 18 (obviously not too much to Red Bull though!)