McLaren are definitely off to a better start than last year. Wasn't a spectacular showing by any means but did display that the team has put themselves in a better starting point opposed to the previous year.

McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri feel as if the car has more to offer and that the first race in Bahrain is not a direct representative as to the performance of the MCL38. The following race in Saudi Arabia may be a more accurate indicator of where the team stands amongst others as its high speed elements could favor the British F1 team.

Towards the end of the 2023 season, McLaren showed some promise in their rookie driver Piastri winning a sprint race and Norris landing on the podium a few times. This year the team hopes to be in the running for 3rd or 2nd fastest, as they feel they are still quite a bit off the pace from Red Bull but can still challenge Mercedes and Ferrari.

McLaren qualified amongst the bottom half of points finishes and finished the race in around the same spot. Norris qualified P7 and finished P6, while Piastri both qualified and finished P8. As it stands McLaren is the 4th fastest team after the first race but are optimistic that they can move their way up throughout the long 2024 F1 season.