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The future is bright for McLaren, so says Lando. Fresh from clambering out of the MCL38 on the back of our strongest race of the season so far, our British star was talking up the MCL38 and the team’s work behind the scenes, explaining why he expects things to “click” if we can fix a “few little things”.

Earning us our first Australian Grand Prix podium since 2014, Lando claimed our maiden rostrum of the season at the Albert Park Circuit, and his 14th overall, whilst levelling with Alain Prost for Formula 1 Grand Prix starts at McLaren.

Finishing third, directly ahead of his teammate Oscar, both drivers believed that our pace was better than they’d been anticipating going into the weekend.

“I think we expected good pace, but maybe not to keep up with Charles, and honestly, I would say our pace was probably a bit better than Charles today,” Lando explained. “It is clear that they have a car that is quicker than us, so for us to be able to compete against them, to compete against the Ferrari, it shows very good signs for us. A positive day and a good load of points, therefore, we can’t be any happier.”

Lando and Oscar had held onto their positions at the start of the race, before benefitting from Max Verstappen’s retirement when they were promoted to second and fourth. Although Lando lost a place to Charles Leclerc in the pits, both drivers were able to keep up with the Ferrari’s at the front of the field, whilst comfortably holding off those behind.

Oscar added: “Of course, I would have loved to be one spot up, but I am pretty happy. There were a few little things where I could have done a bit better, I just struggled a little in that middle stint on the Hard, but all in all, I am pretty happy with the race. It is a good load of points for the whole team.

“We were a bit quicker than we expected, we could hang with the Ferrari’s and that was a positive surprise. Obviously, Max went out early, and I was surprised Checo wasn’t a bit quicker, but this was a good result, I am happy with that. I think the fact that we were able to stay pretty close to Ferrari was a great sign, so I am excited for the future.”

We’ve enjoyed a strong start to the season so far, collecting 12 points in the season opener in Bahrain and 16 in the second round at Saudi Arabia, which places us third in the Constructors’ standings.

The team expected the Jeddah Corniche Circuit and Albert Park Circuit to suit the characteristics of the MCL38 and were pleased to see their predictions bear fruit, with attention now switching to the upcoming Japanese Grand Prix.

Meanwhile, Lando says that the team are working hard back at base on upgrades - both for the short and long term - that should improve upon our weaknesses at other circuits.

Explaining what those current strengths and weaknesses are, and what it means moving forward, Lando said: “If we look back to Suzuka last year, it was one of our best weekends: two cars on the podium, just the Red Bull ahead of us.

“I think it is clear that Red Bull are maybe two steps ahead of us and Ferrari one step, but when you get to a track that suits us, then I think we can be confident.

“We are very strong in the high-speed corners, which is why we were good here, but we lose a significant amount of time in the slow-speed corners. If we can improve on that just a little bit, then most weekends I would say I would be confident that we could compete for podiums and good points.

“We are missing a few little things, but we are working and as soon as we do that, things will click.”

Lando, Oscar and the team are now on their way home from Melbourne, with just under two weeks to go until the Japanese Grand Prix on 05-07 April.