McLaren sporting director Gil de Ferran is worried about a “big reshuffle” in the midfield order at the Spanish Grand Prix.
The start of the European leg of the season sees every team bring the most significant improvements to the cars so far this year and can set the tone for a busy three months ahead.
Having featured strongly with three top-eight finishes so far and currently sat as the lead midfield team in fourth in the Constructors’ standings then, McLaren is a team looking over their shoulder.
“In Barcelona, there’s potential for a big reshuffle because a lot of people bring different things, and we don’t control that, we only control what we can do,” he told Motorsport.com.
“On the positive side, I think we understand the strengths and weaknesses of our current car and we’re very focused on saying we need to improve the weaknesses that we’ve identified.
“Where we’re going to be in Barcelona and from then on, I’ve no idea. It’s just [keeping our] heads down, and step-by-step.”
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Adding to the car improvements, McLaren is also enjoying watching their new line-up produce consistently strong performances.
“On the driver front Lando [Norris] is doing an outstanding job, and so is Carlos [Sainz],” De Ferran noted.
“He [Sainz] has been unfortunate in the first three races of the year, but both guys have been on the pace, both guys are working very well with the team and with each other.
“The relationship is good, and we’ve just got keep building on that.”
In his comments ahead of the Spanish race, the 19-year-old Briton is happy to be back at more familiar circuits, following new experiences in Australia and China.
“Racing at tracks I know helps me hit the ground running when preparing for the weekend,” Norris explained. “It only feels like yesterday that we were in Spain for pre-season testing.
“Heading back to where we first tested the car should give us a good indication of the car’s performance and the areas we need to improve.
“It’s also good to have the Brand Centre [motorhome] back for the European races, it really adds to the atmosphere in the paddock.”
