McLaren, Norris debuts on track with number 1 – PHOTO

F1 test, McLaren’s day After “studying” its opponents for two days, McLaren returned to the track approximately 50 days after Lando Norris won the title, the 13th world championship for a papaya driver. The MCL40, the model with which the Woking team will approach the new era of F1, left the pits this morning at Montmeló on the occasion of the five-day shakedown on the Catalan track. For McLaren, this is the first “semi-official” outing, given that in reality these tests are behind closed doors and organized by the teams, unlike those in Bahrain. 16 years later, the papayas will be able to display the number 1 on the front fairing: in fact, this hasn’t happened since 2010, when Jenson Button wore it on the MP4-25 as the reigning world champion. The photos These are the first photos of Norris with the number 1 and a special black livery for the shakedown. McLaren’s day 1 was initially supposed to be Tuesday, but the rain complicated the team’s plans, which preferred to postpone the debut until today, considering the more lenient weather forecast. Montmeló, however, welcomed the teams with asphalt not yet ready for slick tyres, as can be seen from McLaren’s choice of intermediates. On a morning that saw Red Bull, Ferrari and Aston Martin absent, Norris settled for third place behind George Russell and Franco Colapinto.