McLaren had a great 2019 with a new driver line-up and will be aiming to do better in this F1 season with their 2020 car

There is a lot of optimism going around the McLaren camp as their 2020 F1 car is to be revealed soon.

The British outfit improved on a disastrous season prior to that and saw Fernando Alonso even leave the sport.

Rookie Lando Norris and former Red Bull driver Carlos Sainz formed a great partnership, and there were some great performances too.

Sainz ended the season with one podium to his name, a surprise, and he even finished sixth in the driver’s championship, ahead of one of the Red Bulls.

Norris impressed several times but didn’t have luck on his side in some races. McLaren will be hoping that the new MCL35 improves their performance next season as they try to catch up with the top teams.

Beating Mercedes or Ferrari regularly in 2020 would be difficult but it could lay the groundwork for a fantastic car in 2021.

The 2021 F1 season sees a revamp in many rules and McLaren could end up with a winning car.

However, the MCL 35 could spring a surprise and here is all the information needed ahead of the new season.

MCL 35 Engine

The Renault-powered McLaren will be on the final year of their contract with the French company.

McLaren replaced Honda with Renault but confirmed that they would be powered by Mercedes in the 2021 season.

The Renault engines need to match up with the Honda ones for next season at least, and it will be interesting to see how things go with them.

McLaren 2020 Livery

The British team haven’t shared a lot of information regarding this but we should see some more of their papaya orange and blue colour scheme next season too.

There could be a surprise for the 2021 season as McLaren shared their livery for the Indycar and it had a lot more of black than normal.

A new era begins. Introducing our 2020 @IndyCar contenders. 👊 #INDYCAR // #ReadyToRace pic.twitter.com/VQJNPGUHKW

— Arrow McLaren IndyCar Team (@ArrowMcLaren) February 7, 2020

McLaren 2020 Upgrades

James Key from Toro Rosso was signed up to be the key designer for the MCL35 and it will be interesting to see if radical changes are made in the car.

The team’s head, Andreas Seidl, did claim that that little of the MCL34 would be used in the new car and closing the gap would be the main aim for this season.

Driver line-up

McLaren had only handed one-year deals to Norris and Sainz last year but took the decision to extend that for this season too.

That was a bit of a surprise since it was done midway through the season, but the pair have been great in a car that isn’t the best on the grid.

Should McLaren give them a better car this season, there could be more surprises coming in. Sainz got one podium last time around, and with some luck, they could get more this season too.

When will McLaren launch the MCL35?

The car will be on show on 13 February as most of the F1 teams launch their title challengers in this week.

Mercedes will do it a day later and testing also takes place after in February. This would last for six days before the start of the season which happens in Australia, as usual.

More Formula One news

• “I just like to be next to my car” – Charles Leclerc opens up about his pre-race ritual in F1

• Ferrari decide which driver will test 2021 Pirelli tyres in February

• Max Verstappen will be allowed to concentrate on race during 2020 Dutch Grand Prix weekend

Follow our dedicated Formula One page for instant Formula One news and updates