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TECH WEEKLY: How McLaren’s Mercedes power unit and a bold wheelbase choice have shaped early-season pace

F1 technical expert Mark Hughes takes a look at how McLaren are getting to grips with the Mercedes power unit, with illustrations from Giorgio Piola.

Technical ContributorsMark Hughes and Giorgio Piola
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McLaren’s disastrous double non-start in Shanghai, because of two unrelated electrical problems, prevented us getting a better read on progress the team has made in closing the performance deficit to the identically-powered Mercedes team.

Qualifying in China suggested that the team had got a much better understanding of the optimum way of running the Mercedes power unit. In Melbourne, the leading McLaren had qualified 0.862s off the Mercedes pole. In Shanghai the deficit was approximately halved, down to 0.486s adrift.

In China on Saturday, team boss Andrea Stella spoke about the process behind that improvement in relative pace. “We've been able to learn a bit more about how the power unit works," he said. "It's very complicated, with a very complex way of working.

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