McLaren was a disappointment in the first race of the 2022 Formula 1 season, however, the British team has been able to partially redeem itself in the second race of this season, the 2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Lando Norris managed to position himself in seventh position, however, he was only a tenth of a second away from being able to overtake the French Alpine driver, Esteban Ocon, however, he did not get it in time and had to comfort himself with his seventh position, although he could not finish as the “best of the rest”. Likewise, the Australian driver of McLaren, Daniel Ricciardo, did not manage to finish the race since he had to retire the car from him on lap 35 of the Grand Prix held last weekend. As the race was going, it looked like double-point finish for the British team, until the MCL36 failed to complete another lap. Initially, Daniel Ricciardo commented that he simply lost the drive, which stopped giving him power, and despite his retirement, the Australian driver was happy as he was finally able to see the potential of this year's car.

“It could have been a number of things, maybe driveshaft, if I was to guess. I am not a mechanic, so don’t take my word for it. But yes, it was obvious that we could have had a double points [finish], which is pretty awesome from where we were a week ago.” The Australian driver commented after his retirement at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

“And it was looking alright, I think there is some positive to take from the weekend for sure. We still have a lot to go, but certainly some progress, which is nice.” Lando Norris’ teammate stated.

While it is true that the Bahrain International Circuit is very different from last weekend's Jeddah Street Circuit, the first round was very disappointing for McLaren. The British team came out of a 2020 season in which they were able to obtain 3rd place in the constructors' championship, and although they could not repeat it in 2021, that season was an extremely strong duel against Ferrari, with the Italians being the winners. In Bahrain, the McLarens finished in fourteenth and fifteenth position respectively. Without a doubt, this was something very outstanding (but not in a good way) of said race. Daniel Ricciardo has stated that the characteristics of Jeddah were quite beneficial for the MCL36.

“Maybe just the characteristics of this circuit certainly seemed to help us. I think both of us, although we weren’t setting the timesheet alight, we had just a bit more confidence with the car from FP1.” Ricciardo admitted. “It still might ebb and flow depending on some circuits we go to, but looking at Melbourne, the changes they’ve made, I think it’s going to be quite flowing and hopefully that suits us – and I think though for the racing it’s going to be good fun.”

Finally, the Australian driver was happy and excited as the next Grand Prix will be in his native country, Australia. The Australian Grand Prix, held at the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, had not been on the calendar since the 2019 season, this derived from the Covid-19 pandemic, however, the highest category of motorsport is already prepared for race in the ocean country.

“I’m excited to go home and compete there and for now, we will just keep chipping away. We can’t promise amazing results yet, but we are going to keep at it. I am sure some better things are on the horizon.”