McLaren started the season off the pace with a car that was both lacking overall downforce and suffering from a lack of aerodynamic efficiency, meaning it creates too much drag for a given downforce level.
Incoming team principal Andrea Stella rolled out a recovery plan to get the team's MCL60 back on track, which included a philosophy change and then a comprehensive upgrade package overseen by a revised technical structure at Woking.
The fruits of its labour were rolled out over the month of July, seeing McLaren make a huge jump in performance as it snared two podiums with Lando Norris in Silverstone and Budapest, followed by a second-place finish for rookie Oscar Piastri in a wet Belgian Grand Prix's Saturday sprint.
But Spa's dry grand prix provided more evidence that for all its progress, McLaren's straight-line deficit is still sticking out like a sore thumb, with its cars lacking up to 15 km/h on the straights and Norris "getting overtaken before the DRS zone even started".
When asked to explain the reasons behind its Spa straight-line deficit, Stella explained McLaren's need to make wholesale car changes for its B-spec meant that it simply hadn't yet been able to free up the resources to address its drag issue for circuits like Spa.
It therefore decided to go for a higher wing level than was optimal for the high-speed circuit because at lower wing levels the car's excessive drag penalty would cost it more overall laptime in the corners than it was worth on the straights.
Source: Autosport