1995 was a season of great expectation for McLaren. The disappointing alliance with
Peugeot had been annulled, and
Mercedes-Benz switched to the team from
Sauber including third-party engine builder partnership with
Ilmor Engineering Ltd. after Ilmor decided to reposition its Formula One program by becoming a third-party engine builder and assembler, and thus earned full-factory works support from
Mercedes-Benz. In addition, Mansell had been tempted out of retirement from his two prior years spent in the
Indy Car series to partner the youthful Häkkinen. The MP4/10 was a radical design, incorporating a high "needle"-nose design and a wing mounted atop the airbox, among other innovations. However, it became apparent that Mansell was unable to fit properly in the narrow cockpit, which affected his elbows and hips, that meant he was forced to miss the first two races of the season whilst a wider
monocoque was built. His racing return lasted just two further Grands Prix, in
San Marino and
Spain, before leaving the team altogether, disgusted with the car's poor performance. Blundell, who had replaced Mansell for both the
Brazil and
Argentina, became a permanent race driver. Despite handling problems due to a lack of front-end grip, and an often unreliable engine, the package proved competitive enough for the team to usually be "best of the rest", behind
Benetton,
Williams and
Ferrari, and Häkkinen was able to score two podium finishes. Team-mate Blundell also took several points finishes. ==Upgrades==