The McLaren F1 team announced late on Monday (January 17) that they will launch their 2022 car, the MCL36, on February 11 2022.
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The anticipation for the 2022 Formula 1 season is now getting ramped up. With Ferrari and Aston Martin having already announced the dates for their 2022 car launch, another team has now done the same: McLaren.
Yes, the British team announced on Monday (January 17) that they will be launching their 2022 car on February 11, 2022.
But it is not just their F1 car that will be revealed on February 11. The team teased on social media that three of their other operations will also be present at the launch at the team’s Woking base.
These other operations are their Extreme E, IndyCar, and Esports squads. This means they are going all out as far as car launches are concerned.
Four racing teams. One epic team launch.
Save the date. ? pic.twitter.com/WO3TRjf96H
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) January 17, 2022
McLaren are now the third team to have announced their launch date. The first team to do so was Aston Martin, who said the AMR22 will be revealed on February 10.
The second team to have announced their launch date was Ferrari. The Maranello-based side will reveal their 2022 machine on February 17.
The reason for the extra excitement among fans this year is the new technical regulations. Car launches are always an exciting time for fans, as they get a first look at the season’s car.
However, the 2022 cars will be very different from the cars that have been raced in the last 5 seasons. This is because F1 is bringing in a host of new aerodynamic regulations in a bid for closer racing.
The 2022 regulations will seek to eliminate the problems of “dirty air”, thus making for closer wheel-to-wheel racing among teams. There’s also going to be a budget cap imposed, in theory levelling out the playing field.
Given 2022 will present a clean slate for all teams, it is reasonable to expect newer contenders to emerge. And McLaren’s work over the past two seasons cannot be ignored.
They finished 2020 third in the constructor’s championship, taking home the title of “best of the rest”. However, they slipped one place down to fourth in the standings in 2021.
The team that beat them to third last season? Their rivals Ferrari, who had a more consistent year all-round in terms of points being scored.
Nevertheless, there were other high points for the Woking-based team. Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris secured a 1-2 finish at the Italian GP, with Ricciardo winning McLaren’s first race since 2012.
This was, incidentally, the only 1-2 finish by any team throughout the season. Whether the team can continue to get such results will depend, of course, on the new car for next season.
