McLaren has repaired the Formula 1 car that Lando Norris claimed was “destroyed” in his Austrian Formula 1 Grand Prix crash with Max Verstappen by installing a repaired floorpan, which was damaged in early 2024. Norris retired following his crash with Red Bull driver Verstappen in the closing stages of last weekend’s event at the Red Bull Ring, after which he claimed that the damage occurred while he was carrying the MCL38 and that the right rear tire was damaged. The puncture back in the pits “destroyed [his] car”. The British driver also claimed the damaged parts were “the best parts on the car [currently] to get rid of” and said “these are all the parts we need” for the race weekend This at Silverstone.

The British race takes place at the end of F1’s first three-race of the 2024 season, which Norris revealed is key to McLaren’s efforts to repair the car, as the company has been intent on stockpiling old parts can be repaired and redeployed if necessary during this busy period of the season. When asked by Motorsport.com about the car’s updated status ahead of the British GP, Norris replied: “Everything is fine. It’s just a longer term issue, it’s affected more than just this weekend. “We have some spare decks that have been damaged before, we can repair and prepare everything.

“The team did a great job getting everything ready. We know that with three races in a row, things can easily go wrong and you can easily take a lot of damage. “Floors are not difficult to damage in the first place – you can just run over a curb and the floor can be damaged quite easily. “So the team did a good job making sure we had enough, [that] we had some extra for this weekend and some were repaired.”
But Norris went on to say that he felt the knock-on effect of sustaining the damage had left McLaren “perhaps not in a perfect situation” where the need for repairs could prevent it from investing in its cars in cost cap rules this season.

“Like the side pipes, the brake pipes – all these things, they come into play,” he added during the pre-event press conference at Silverstone, speaking about the additional damage caused to the his car’s rubber was punctured. “And when you’re in a fierce fight for the championship and you’re giving it your all, you always try to push all the limits beyond the race – budget limits and everything, and CFDs, all that stuff. same – you just want to make as much money as possible. “It’s unfortunate, but the team have done a great job making sure everything goes well this weekend.”