Current McLaren

Arguably one of the big teams in Formula One but lately they don't seem to be able to get the basics right.
Some of their strategy and decisions in the last few years has left more than a few observers scratching their heads.

Just a few for starters:

• Leaving Kimi out on a badly flat-spotted tyre, resulting in it exploding on the last lap.
• Leaving Hamilton out on tyres so badly worn they were down to the canvas; Bridgestone themselves demanded that McLaren bring him in and McLaren refused, keeping him out for a few more laps. That decision arguably cost Hamilton the first rookie WDC and is one which will haunt him and McLaren for the rest of their days.
• Not sending Button and Hamilton out to get banker laps in during Q1.
• Sending Hamilton out on used tyres in Q3, with rain forecast, meaning it would be impossible to set a fast lap time on his second attempt on new tyres.

Their major updates seem to send them further down the grid, instead of challenging for pole positions and wins. As the season progresses they tend to get worse before getting better, by which time it is generally too late.

It's often said of them "write them off at your peril", but is this necessarily true?

The last time they won the WCC was in 1998 and their last WDC was 2008, before that 1999.
Their days of regularly winning championships seem to be well and truly behind them.

It's all well and good coming up with reasons why they haven't won championships.
The fact remains though, they have won just one WDC in the last 12 years.

So where to now for McLaren?

(I wrote this in rather a hurry so I will flesh it out when I have more time.)

 

[McZiderRed]

There will always be people stupid enough to bet on a driver not in the race. Oh, the bookies know punters so well...

 

[Tuscan1969]

Mephistopheles thats very harsh.... Come on Jenson

 

[Mephistopheles]

By the bookies not me and considering Melbourne is a Jenson track (He even beat Lewis there in the same machinery first time out.) I would put him on at least equal terms with Alonso there, but the bookies had him at 80's and Alonso at 40's and that is what I found amusing if the car was worthy of their talents Jenson would be a bloody good bet.....

 

[cider_and_toast]

Part of a bookies skill is to set the odds in a way that will attract money to the right bets. People will take all of that into account and think "wow, Button looks good value at 80-1" and back him. If they had both Button and Alonso on 40's they'd be splitting the bet. It's all part of the game isn't it?

 

[Mephistopheles]

I don't gamble I never have and I never will so that is why I don't understand the rules...

 

[cider_and_toast]

Normally the favorite with the bookies is a combination of the one whose most likely to win and the one whose been backed the most by punters.

The initial odds are those of the bookies but then most subsequent changes are down to who has backed who to win.

 

[Il_leone]

Alonso may not even be able to complete the season ... there are better odds on that than a Mclaren winning the race

Last time I remember a driver being forced to retire before the season started due to injury/ medical advice was Moss back in 1962

There is a chance Alonso may not be the same driver Mclaren hoped so Ron now explain to your fellow shareholders that you're still the best man to lead Mclaren to the glory years

I am surprised no one has told Ron you need " Senna back at Mclaren" ...I don't mean Ayrton

 

[RasputinLives]

You're not going to trott out the old Honda like Brazilian drivers nonesense again are you?

 

[teabagyokel]

I'm pretty sure Bruno Senna is not the driver for McLaren. He's media-friendly, popular and shit. McLaren prefer drivers who are corporate, unpopular and excellent.

 

[Il_leone]

No but its Senna in a Mclaren Honda .. has a familiar sound to it but unfortunately it aint going to turn around Mclaren's (and Ron's) fortunes any minute

 

[teabagyokel]

That really is not how McLaren work.

 

[Il_leone]

teabagyokel RasputinLives

The only thing missing from the previous test at Barcelona when Mclaren bought the MP4/4 to the track was putting Senna in a Mclaren Honda which will complete Ron's delusional picture that Mclaren will be great again ...only that was over 25 years ago and he' appears to be stuck in a time warp

 

[Mephistopheles]

Perhaps when Alonso got a bang on the head Ron woke up in 1990...

 

[cider_and_toast]

Those Peugeot engines will come good one day

 

[teabagyokel]

Ron must have thought, 'can't be 1995, we'd have a crap engine, have signed a World Champion I abhor who won't make the first race, and have the rest of the grid looking forward to giving us a beating.'

 

[Il_leone]

teabagyokel Ron must still be thinking it is 1988 when he bought the MP4/4 was at Barcelona to display.. all he has to do with the current car is paint it Red and White

 

[Mephistopheles]

Coulthard reckons that Alonso simply ended up at McLaren because there was nowhere else for him to go and that he has lost his need to win....

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/31759693

 

[teabagyokel]

He's not lost the need to win, he has lost the ability to...

 

[Andyoak]

I hope that isn't true... But it may be.

 

[Kewee]

No driver or team was able to beat Red Bull during Vettel's championship years. Alonso came closest twice which was far better than any other driver/team combination managed. He's no different than any other driver, he needs a car under him capable of being driven to consistent wins and podiums and he didn't have that during his Ferrari years. McLaren/Honda may be having problems at present but they will become one of the top teams sooner than most think, but as Alonso has said they require patience to develop their car. In 2016 Alonso will be reminding everyone just how good he still is.