The McLaren MCL34 is one of the Mclaren entries the open record knows by name, and by little else. That is not nothing: a name in the catalogue is where a car's story starts to be recoverable. Its designer of record is Pat Fry / Andrea Stella / Peter Prodromou / Mark Ingham / Stefano Sordo / Guillaume Cattelani.
How it came about
The McLaren MCL34 is a Formula One racing car designed by Pat Fry and constructed by McLaren to compete in the 2019 Formula One World Championship. The car was driven by Carlos Sainz Jr., who joined the team from the Renault Sport F1 Team; and 2018 Formula 2 Championship runner-up Lando Norris. Sainz Jr. and Norris replaced Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne, both of whom left the team at the end of the 2018 championship.
The MCL34 was powered by a Renault engine, the Renault E-Tech 19, and made its début at the 2019 Australian Grand Prix. The car was considered to be a big improvement compared to its disappointing predecessor, the MCL33, often being the best of the rest in qualifying and race trim behind the three leading teams: Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull. The car's best result was at the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix when Sainz finished third. This marked Sainz's first podium finish and McLaren's first since Kevin Magnussen and Jenson Button finished 2nd and 3rd, respectively, at the 2014 Australian Grand Prix. The result was enough to secure 4th place in the Constructors' Championship, their best finish in seven years.
Family and rivals
Where it sits in Mclaren's history is not in doubt: the McLaren MCL33 came before it; the McLaren MCL35 followed it. Its Mclaren stablemates include the McLaren M15 and the McLaren M16.