The 11 changes that have helped turn the McLaren into an F1 rocketship

McLaren’s latest upgrade has transformed its pace in Formula 1, as it has emerged as one of the best cars in high-speed corners.

In fact, such was the advantage of the MCL-60 through some of Silverstone’s fastest turns last weekend that Lewis Hamilton labelled it a ‘rocketship’ as he was left powerless to challenge it.

A first package of updates appeared at the Austrian Grand Prix followed by a second step in Britain, which included a new front wing. These combined to help Lando Norris secure a front row grid slot and take second in the race.

While some rivals have suggested that the McLaren tweaks are just a Red Bull copy, such a simplification of the work put in is unfair as a deep dive into the changes makes it clear just how much of its own effort has been put in to finding improvements.

The exclusive side-by-side comparison above shows just how substantial the revisions are, as we look into the small details and go through what has been improved.

1. Changes have been made to the shape and position of the floor fences in order to tailor them to the alterations that have been made downstream.

2. McLaren had already flirted with a sidepod inlet design similar to that used by Red Bull since last season, but its latest update has resulted in a design that’s even more like its rival. The upper leading edge of the inlet has been set further back, whilst the lower lip is now positioned higher on the chassis, increasing the size of the undercut beneath.

3. The upper surface of the floor already had a heavily contoured blister to accommodate the lower SIS, whilst also creating the necessary pocket of space for the underfloor too. The blister has been re-profiled as part of the update and accompanied by a smaller blister inboard of it too.

4. The changes made to the forward portion of the sidepod and the inlet have necessitated that the mirror housing and their associated paraphernalia be redesigned, with the upper slat retired and a revised outer stay employed to better suit the aerodynamic profile required downstream.

5. The aerodynamic fairing that surrounds the halo now features a vertical blade as the rear leg transitions into the rear bodywork, whilst a winglet is now mounted on the side of the structure too.

6. The overall change in the shape of the sidepods has resulted in the deletion of the swage line down the side of the bodywork.

7. McLaren is the latest team to adopt a deeper water slide-style gulley on the sidepod’s upper surface, following in the footsteps of Aston Martin which took a more aggressive approach to the design architecture first wielded by Alpine. The height of the sidepod’s flank has also been increased in order to maximise the internal gulley layout.

8. The upper cooling gill panel has been moved from the traversal position to one more commonly…