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Brown: "McLaren will be back where it belongs"

Published on 12 Jan 2018 11:00
13
By: Fergal Walsh

McLaren executive director Zak Brown says that 2018 will be the year McLaren gets back to where it belongs. The Woking-based squad is expected to have a much more successful year in 2018, after ridding itself of the troublesome Honda power unit.

Instead, it will be running with Renault's unit, which too had its troubles in 2017. However, with Red Bull winning three Grands Prix last season powered by Renault, McLaren is aiming to make a return to the front of the field this season.

McLaren unveiled an orange inspired livery in 2017, something which former CEO Ron Dennis had always been against. Brown has repeatedly mentioned it will change its livery again this year, with a papaya livery appearing to be the favourite.

"People will like what our car looks like, we've got some new partners onboard that we’ll start announcing later this month and we’ve got the two drivers we want," he said. "We’re happy with the working relationship with Renault, and we should hopefully be back to where people are used to seeing McLaren – at the front of the field!"

Honda, whose three-year partnership with McLaren ended at the end of last season, travel to Toro Rosso. Brown admits that Honda was to blame for three years of disappointing and frustrating results, which left the team without a single podium.

"[Honda] was certainly our single largest deficit of performance. We’re not perfect, we certainly have room to improve, our pit stops aren’t good enough, we need to be top three so we have some areas we can improve, but the lack of power was our single biggest area of weakness.

"I think when we get the Renault in the back we should see a substantial difference in Australia. We’ve got a lot of confidence in Renault, so the package should be one of the most anticipated teams to watch come Australia. We’re eager to get out there testing."

Fergal Walsh

Kean

Posts: 692

That's it, Mr. Brown jinxed it. Please stop talking about how good you'll be.

1
Jan 12 2018 - 11:32

F1 News Jake Dennis Eloy Room Renault McLaren Honda

Replies (13)

SPERX

Posts: 21
I certainly want McLaren in the mix. Alonso is always entertaining and given a car which performs ..........?
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- Jan 12 2018 - 11:10
Kean

Posts: 692
That's it, Mr. Brown jinxed it. Please stop talking about how good you'll be.
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- Jan 12 2018 - 11:32
- calle.itw
  
  Posts: 8,527
  Well, the amount of times Brown and Boullier crowed about McLaren having a good 2018 year has reached a sufficient amount, so we will likely get negative performance this year. I want them to have a decent year, but honestly, it'll likely be tough for them to even beat Renault.
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  Jan 12 2018 - 12:36
blade

Posts: 341
Was reading the our day how difficult it is for even the top teams to get title sponsors - how have McClaren managed to get by without this for three years - they are one of the big team with huge headcount - does anyone know the answer?
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- Jan 12 2018 - 15:53
- calle.itw
  
  Posts: 8,527
  They get money from their other divisions, like McLaren's tech and dev division and their automotive division. They also got decent sums from Honda (from what I've heard, we are talking title sponsor sums).
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  Jan 12 2018 - 16:27
Barron

Posts: 625
This guy is a marketing guru and can only see the shiny side. It doesn’t matter how much you want to believe him, you know there’s no substance to his words. Like everyone else, I hope McLaren has a good year but beware the Ides of March.
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- Jan 12 2018 - 17:04
- calle.itw
  
  Posts: 8,527
  You dont have to be dishonest or overly optimistic to be a marketing guy. I dont always agree with them, but CEOs and other spokes people of the video game publisher CD Project Red have kept most of the promises they've made. Overpromising generally dont create a lot of trust longterm, no matter how well you perform later on.
  + 1
  
  Jan 12 2018 - 17:24
- ajpennypacker
  
  Posts: 2,475
  I expect at the very least a very solid midfield contender. I think most people agree their chassis was very good. Regulations are largely unchanged. The dreadful Honda engine is gone. My conservative expectation is McLaren to be a regular point finisher and snatch a couple of podiums.
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  Jan 12 2018 - 21:21
- calle.itw
  
  Posts: 8,527
  Very good, but not very versatile. For reference, Red Bull had a Renault unit, but they were faster than some Mercedes powered cars on the straights in Baku, yet they were also fast in slow corners. I dont really expect McLaren to be good enough for podiums, no matter how good they might be, I think at least three, four or maybe even five teams will be better next year.
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  Jan 12 2018 - 21:26
- FatMike
  
  Posts: 153
  Love how everyone started to say how good their chassis was last year just because they said so themselves. Don't for the Post Dennis era marketing claims ppl!)
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  Jan 13 2018 - 07:46
- calle.itw
  
  Posts: 8,527
  Well, last year's chassis was good, at least in corners, I dont think thats an inacccurate statement. It wasnt anywhere near what Ferrari or Red Bull produced, true, but it was far superior compared to what they produced in 2016 and 2015.
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  Jan 13 2018 - 10:34
mcbhargav

Posts: 1,332
whats the time of reference Zak? 2015? where, McLaren belonged to the bottom of the List.
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- Jan 12 2018 - 17:36
- xoya
  
  Posts: 583
  Was asking myself the same thing when I've read the title. They've been everywhere, in the gutter and on the top. Where do they really belong?
  + 0
  
  Jan 13 2018 - 09:09