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.)

 

[rufus_mcdufus]

It's becoming clearer that Whitmarsh must've been an incredibly good team principal, knowing he had to contend with Ron as well as running the team.

 

[Kewee]

as DC says ALonso has a habit of making hasty decisions . At the moment he still believes in the long term plan but anything can happen in F1

Waiting five years for Ferrari to come up with a competitive car is hardly hasty. His timing may not have been good but moving teams would have seemed a decent decision, time may still prove him right.

 

[cider_and_toast]

I agree (It's happenend at last ) with Kewee on this one. At the time last year, with slowly declining results, 5 years without a title, a season of major staff changes at the top and a partnership between driver and team that had clearly reached the limit of good will, Alonso's decision would have been coming for a while. Given Honda's track record this was always going to be a season of struggle but I don't think anyone would have predicted just how bad they are. In my opinion it's going to take at least another full season for Honda to get anywhere near the top step, so the big questions are, a) how long will Alonso hold on for? and b) If Button is replaced, who will fill the second seat and if that person out peforms Alonso, what effect will that have on question a.

 

[FB]

It's Silverstone up next, I believe we should be seeing a McLaren podium Kewee If this does happen I'm off to Paddy Power to put a tenner on Will Stevens winning the race.

 

[Titch]

You mean the podium is going to be stored in the McLaren pit for a few hours?

 

[Road of Bones]

Rumour has it that the Silverstone podium has been redsigned & built at the MTC - it's the only possibility for a "McLaren Podium" for this season, at any rate...

...the reports that it encompasses a trap-door with a Lewis-sized net beneath it might have come from a doodle glimpsed on the corner of Ron's desk-blotter, however...

 

[teabagyokel]

...the reports that it encompasses a trap-door with a Lewis-sized net beneath it might have come from a doodle glimpsed on the corner of Ron's desk-blotter, however...

RD: How efficious has the ruse proven, Eric?
EB: Zut alors! We 'ave accidentally caught a Rosberg.
RD: Dispose of it as we did the paternaton.

 

[RasputinLives]

So Vandoorne managed 76 laps in the McLaren today despite rain and the cancelation of the first session. That means he's done more mileage in the car in an afternoon than Button and Alonso have done put together in the last 2 Grand Prix.

 

[Mephistopheles]

That's it!!!!! The drivers are breaking the car, sack the pair of them and let Van and the other bloke have a go..

 

[Il_leone]

Mephistopheles Blame it on the drivers .. anyone else to blame but Ron himself for the overwhelming under performance ?

 

[Il_leone]

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/119658

so Bouillier is realising that if Mclaren don't get their act together it may affect its future competitiveness why cant Ron Dennis?

 

[Il_leone]

http://www1.skysports.com/f1/news/2...-at-reports-jenson-buttons-future-is-in-doubt

 

[Mephistopheles]

They do like to gossip don't they? But to be honest Jenson has been too loyal to McLaren he does not deserve the cars he has been given to drive in the last two and a half seasons I would rather see him either move on or retire than see him put through this humiliation for another year, McLaren have a lot to answer for..

 

[Il_leone]

Mephistopheles Correction Ron Dennis has a lot to answer to especially his dithering last year actually cost the team a lot of preparation and development time for this year if the drivers don't know if they are staying or going

 

[RasputinLives]

Hasn't Button's future been in doubt since around 2008?

 

[Andyoak]

I think you can safely go back even further...

 

[Il_leone]

RasputinLives Don't see any logic in it other than saving £5m in the wage bill or so if Mclaren then promote Vandoorne or KMag

 

[teabagyokel]

Andyoak - You can't. Button's future was in doubt from 2000-07, absolutely shittered in 2008, then in doubt hence.

 

[Andyoak]

I hope the 't was a typo / spellcheck thing... That's what I meant. Hard to think of a year when his future hasn't been in doubt.

 

[teabagyokel]

I was joking that his future was far worse than "in doubt" in 2008, hence the can't. Need the ol' internet sarcasm tag.