Vettel storms to pole position in Canada

Yeah, awesome performance. Im a bit surprised to see Ferrari and Red Bull matching Mercedes here in terms of race pace. This will be fun.

They werent really all that bad though. They've been pretty consistently right behind Works Renault, which is okay seeing as its their first year and they have a customer engine and they arent Red Bull. And considering how high aero their setup is, its still impressive to see them this high up. But I'll admit I smirked a bit, because I find some weird amusement in seeing a team that promised us heavens this season bite a sour apple.

I wouldn't care had they not been so overbearing and cocky for 3 years. Best chassis, GP2 engine and all around just bashing Honda every chance they got.

No matter how you look at it, they should at be ahead of - or at very least on par with - Renault at this stage.

I have a feeling that the worst is yet to come for McLaren in the coming years, because logic would dictate that if the have any truly talented people left, they will start looking for greener pastures. And then it'll be extremely hard (not to mention expensive) to bounce back.

I dont necessarily agree that they should be ahead of works Renault already. One shouldnt underestimate the power of a works team. But then again, this is McLaren we are talking about, so they shouldnt have the kinda problems they are having. But sadly they had it coming. I said it already before this season began, if they overpromised they would be bound to lose no matter how well they do, and it really seems like that is true. As you say, it wouldnt surprise me if the true decline of McLaren isnt far away.

As for the GP2 engine thing: I really loved Suzuka 2016, when they finally had to admit that there were in fact some major issues with the chassis aswell.

On another note: Im not sure McLaren will be able to be a works team again in a near future. Even if they were to get the shot at it, whom would like to partner with a team that were so ready to throw their engine supplier under the buss when shit hit the fan?

Well let's not forget that Renault essentially started from zero a few years ago, and they've had a slow and steady climb up the ranks. McLaren, on the other hand, have been going on and on about how they've had the best chassis, and all they needed was a somewhat decent engine, and then everything would be rainbows and unicorns.

I said numerous times last season that I didn't believe they had the best chassis but rather they had a chassis that was heavy on downforce and drag. So I didn't believe anything really would change, besides the fact that they wouldn't be able to hide behind Honda anymore.

In that respect it's a shame we never got to see Sauber Honda vs McLaren Honda, although I'm sure much of Sauber's improvement can be traced to "Alfa Romeo" and a current PU. But it would've been fun anyway, ask things considered.

Good point, and they've really managed to make some decent steps. Hell, at times they almost seem to be close to Red Bull. I were inclined to believe McLaren had one of the best chassis last year. Not the best, but among them, but as you say, after a while it got pretty apparent it was a one-trick pony. Far from anything the top 4 produces. I just dont see McLaren as capable of mounting a legit challenge for podiums, when there are others that are just so much better prepared. Hell, alot of their current form is down to luck. Haas has looked far more impressive, and McLaren has managed to parasite from their failures. I think McLaren will pretty much stay around P6 from now on, the new Williams of F1.

Alot of Sauber's current bout can be attributed to more support from Ferrari, for sure, and that up to date PU surely help, but I also think its down to Williams' decline, meaning there are more opportunities for them to challenge for points.

I honestly dont know. On one hand, I agree with Boudy: they came at a time when F1 did their best to really limit how much development the teams could do with that pathetic and very token token system. On the other: a team with less pressure, and more freedom to develop on their own accord would probably have been better to start with. Cooperation between chassis development and engine development is vital, but too much influence from one department over the other can be really bad, and thats probably, in part, what happened here.

Yeah, this track really isnt down McLaren's alley. And that has been their problem from the beginning: they've built far too draggy specialized cars. And thats why they will never be able to beat Red Bull, since their cars are so flexible that they can make them work basically anywhere.

Agree. Leclerc looked very good also. Love that Hartley is generating a bit of momentum I like his story. McLaren could do with lowering their driver bill. However having a relatively inexperienced driver line-up could backfire on you looking at Williams. If drivers are quick than it's ok they might put Norris next to vandoorne. I could see Alonso go to Renault next year.