The McLaren team have taken the covers off their brand new 2012 Formula One challenger in an official press launch on Wednesday, with the new design controversially eschewing the reported trend for 'platypus noses' for 2012.
McLaren unveiled their new car in remarkably understated fashion on Wednesday morning at the team's headquarters, with the team's tendency for flashy launches ignored in favour of a more simple 'pull a cover off' approach.
The most immediate design quirk on the new machine was a lack of a Caterham-style stepped nose, a feature that many F1 insiders believed would become standard across the grid in 2012.
Instead, McLaren have opted for a more attractive curved nose design in order to fulfil new FIA height requirements for the nose section of the car.
The Woking team are aiming to hit the ground running with their new car, having started slowly for the last three years, particularly in 2011 when they suffered a disastrous pre-season with the MP4-26.
The MP4-27, which will test for the first time at the Jerez circuit on February 7th, also features high and square-shaped sidepods, with a styled front wing designed to funnel air over the front wheels to the higher entrances.
The design appears to signal an end to the team's L-shaped sidepod design from 2011.
The car also features obvious exhaust exits on either side of the car, sticking out from the main body of the sidepod.
However, it is currently unclear precisely how much of the detailing on the MP4-27 will remain on the car for the first test of the year.
Before the launch, quotes from team members had suggested a high amount of controversy in their new design, with the team reportedly preparing to fight to prove the legality of their design.
"There are technical innovations on the car which will be immediately obvious when you see them," Geoff McGrath from McLaren's Applied Technologies section was quoted as saying by the Autosport website.
But both drivers were keen to focus on the positives of their new car, with Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button saying that they were looking forward to starting work in their new office.
"I think it is fantastic," Hamilton shrieked regarding the new car, "It's great to be here after a great winter. Seeing hard work going into building this car is inspiring.
"It is most refined-looking car we have had for some time so we are looking forward to getting back in it."
Button, who finished as runner-up in the 2011 world championship, added: "I'm very excited. This is the moment we see how hard we have all been working. It's a very exciting day.
"These guys have been flat out since we finished racing in 2011 on improving the car as much as they could in the simulator and I'm looking forward to getting out in it at Jerez."
He concluded: "I am sure everyone is apprehensive when you start testing and I cannot wait to jump in the car."
McLaren are aiming to take the fight to Red Bull with their new car, with the Woking team now having gone three seasons without a drivers title, and some thirteen years without a constructors crown.
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