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.)

 

[Titch]

So not only are we losing races from the calendar but we are about to lose a team as well.

 

[FB]

T'would appear that McLaren are in a worse place than Williams.

 

[cider_and_toast]

I don't really understand the sums. If you take into account McLaren took out a 650 million pound bond on their factory and historic car collection in 2017, share holders have injected a further 500 million in the last 18 months and they are asking for another 280 million, that means that McLaren have somehow burned their way through 1.43 billion pounds in the last 3 years.

That's insane spending that has bought the company, in any of it's groups, absolutely sod all.

 

[FB]

McLaren Racing lost £84.5 million in 2018, according to the accounts filed at companies house. Employee salary costs were just under £52 million.

 

[Andyoak]

I'm all for earning a decent wedge; but fuck...

But then again, if they reckon they can shed 1200 people; what were they all doing?

 

[Andyoak]

More relevant, how many do they employ?

 

[rufus_mcdufus]

I'm all for earning a decent wedge; but ****...

But then again, if they reckon they can shed 1200 people; what were they all doing?

McLaren Group as a whole employed 3,798 (from 2018 financial statement figures, so probably a bit different now) and I guess the bulk are probably in McLaren Automotive.

 

[Andyoak]

So they're shedding a quarter of the workforce; even with the hits predicted within the industry that is a high percentage.

 

[FB]

McLaren Racing had 714 employees in 2018. The highest paid director pocketed £3.7 million. They aren't named.

 

[Il_leone]

They have secured a loan from a Bahrain bank. Clearly the team is burning a lot of cash with no income right now. Goes to show no one wants buy expensive cars in times like these.

 

[Bill Boddy]

When are the 2019 season rewards from Liberty due?

 

[Il_leone]

Wont be until 2021 I think there is stupid rule where teams must complete the season after before they get money to stop dodgy owners running off

 

[Greenlantern101]

Gulf the new sponsor. Like the mock up but needs more orange.

 

[Il_leone]

It is not the first time Gulf had backed Mclaren. Back in the mid 90's there were Gulf Mclarens in the GT endurance series with an engine made by BMW

 

[gethinceri]

It's gotta be one of the top 5 sponsor liveries ever.

 

[cider_and_toast]

McLaren are selling off the family silver in order to raise some more cash:

McLaren puts Woking headquarters up for sale | Autocar

Company plans £200m sell-and-leaseback for famous facility as part of fundraising effort

www.autocar.co.uk

Their financial woes must be even deeper than discussed earlier in the season.

 

[The Artist.....]

McLaren are selling off the family silver in order to raise some more cash:

McLaren puts Woking headquarters up for sale | Autocar

Company plans £200m sell-and-leaseback for famous facility as part of fundraising effort

www.autocar.co.uk

Their financial woes must be even deeper than discussed earlier in the season.

Depending on the length of the lease (100 years?) a sale and leaseback could be very canny to free up operating capital, although it does mean that some cashflow will necessarily be devoted to servicing the lease. In the short-term, it does allow for capital to be opened up, and used for other purposes (e.g. building state-of-the art wind-tunnel and manufacturing facilities).

 

[cider_and_toast]

McLaren had a similar injection of capital earlier in the year. 200 million is relatively small beer in the overall scheme of things at the rate they are burning through cash.

 

[The Artist.....]

It’s interesting hearing the noise out of Woking - the facilities at the MTC are being really bad-mouthed - essentially, the wind tunnel, simulator, CFD, and carbon fibre manufacturing facilities are second rate, and not been invested in since about 2003. (They’ve actually been using the Toyota wind tunnel since about 2010)...

 

[Il_leone]

It’s interesting hearing the noise out of Woking - the facilities at the MTC are being really bad-mouthed - essentially, the wind tunnel, simulator, CFD, and carbon fibre manufacturing facilities are second rate, and not been invested in since about 2003. (They’ve actually been using the Toyota wind tunnel since about 2010)...

Interesting given Ron Dennis prided himself on perfection and it seems they have not spent in the right areas as the last time they won the constructors was 1998.