McLaren have installed part that’s ‘very similar’ to Sauber design for Monza

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It is perhaps unfathomable to imagine that a Formula 1 team at the front of the pack would take inspiration from a backmarker for the design of their car.

McLaren have emerged as potentially the fastest package in F1 this season, after Lando Norris dominated Max Verstappen’s home Grand Prix at Zandvoort to slightly lower the gap in the championship.

The Woking-based squad are now only 30 points behind Red Bull in the constructors’. McLaren’s pace could well make them unbeatable at certain tracks as the defending champions seem to not have answer at the moment.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about McLaren F1 Team from team principal to engine

In contrast, Sauber have endured a torrid season. Drivers Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu have failed to score points in the 15 races so far, making Sauber the only team not to score a point in 2024.

Zhou and Bottas finished two laps down on winner Norris at the Dutch Grand Prix in a miserable weekend that showed Sauber to have one of the most underperforming packages this season.

But as F1 heads straight to Monza, the Swiss team seemed to have inspired the frontrunners with their concept.

McLaren bring ‘very similar’ design to Sauber for Monza

According to a report from Italian publication Formu1a.uno, McLaren have brought new parts with them for the Italian Grand Prix that are ‘very similar’ to their competitors.

With the Monza circuit being a high-speed track and one of efficiency, the teams will come to the weekend with low-downforce wings and a more unloaded set-up; a striking opposite to Zandvoort.

But according to the report, some may try two different configurations to the front and rear wings, the second being the one brought up at Spa, which is what McLaren seem to have done.

While the Woking squad are high-flying in performance, one area of improvement is their competitiveness with an unloaded set-up, as evidenced by Oscar Piastri and Norris not having an answer to Mercedes at Spa.

As they bring their two different concepts to Monza, McLaren also bring new parts, notably the main plane and the endplate on the rear wing.

What is interesting is that the report claims that the McLaren design is ‘very similar’ to that adopted by Sauber; a bizarre revelation considering the sheer gulf in quality between the two teams this season.

Who will drive for Sauber in 2025?

Sauber’s performance this season is concerning as they are set to become Audi for the 2026 season and beyond.

The team have already confirmed Nico Hulkenberg as a works Audi driver on a multi-year contract as they search for the German’s teammate. Several drivers have been linked with the vacant seat, with Gabriel Bortoleto ‘actually talking’ to Sauber at the Dutch Grand Prix.

Current drivers Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu are out of contract at the end of the year with their futures uncertain. Mick Schumacher has been another name mentioned, with Audi being urged to snub Bottas in favour of Schumacher for the seat.

With not much expected to change for 2025 in terms of regulations or the current pecking order, Sauber will be needing to get their act together before Audi enter the sport.