F1 News
Zak Brown shies away from 'domination' as the CEO looks in the 'mirror'
After the summer break, McLaren became the team to beat in Formula One. Out of the four Grands Prix, the British team only could not win in Monza after Charles Leclerc could pull off a one-stop race, but at the event, both Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris finished on the podium. However, CEO Zak Brown prefers to look in the 'rear view mirror'.
Entering the autumn break, similarly to the Dutch GP, Lando Norris could win ahead of Max Verstappen by more than 20 seconds. After the Azerbaijan GP, McLaren also got in the lead in the constructors' standings, overtaking Red Bull Racing. Still Zak Brown prefers not to get carried away.
"'Dominant' is probably not a word I would use. I would say we've got a great race car, but we haven't won the most races this year. That would be the most dominant car, at least to date. We've just got to keep doing what we're doing. This is a tough game that moves very quickly. You can quickly move forward. You can quickly move backwards," the American began.
"I think what ends up happening is other teams move forward at a faster pace. If you kind of take the car that qualifies on pole and you left it untouched by the end of the year, it would probably be last. So I think that's a testament to how great all the racing teams are in Formula One. So we need to keep doing what we're doing at the factory and here at the racetrack," the American continued about setting his team up for the following season.
Brown prefers to look over his shoulder
According to the McLaren CEO, he rather not be enjoying their current form, but focuses on not to lose their advantage. "I think it's probably a mix of both, depending on people's personalities. Mine in particular is one that's always kind of looking in the rear view mirror a bit nervous, and then there's other people in life that, you know, it's the thrill, the pursuit of victory that gets them motivated."
"So it's probably a healthy dose of a combination of both that get everyone out of bed every day, highly motivated to continue to just make these small incremental gains," he concluded.
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