McLaren-Honda’s racing director Eric Boullier says the team are already seeing “massive” improvements in-car performance two races into the opening season since testing.
McLaren who have reunited with engine supplier Honda have had a tough start to their new relationship with limited running in testing and only one car to finish the opening two races of the season.
The team who only had one car start the season opening Australian Grand Prix were at least able to battle with cars in Malaysian with Fernando Alonso running at a point in eighth place. However power unit problems caused both Alonso and team-mate Jenson Button to retire from the race.
“We’re not in the points, yeah we’re in front of the Force India but that’s not where we want to be,” Boullier told AUTOSPORT.
“Today we are not measuring the absolute performance yet – that is when you start to fight for a pole and win – but we are measuring the relative one compared with Barcelona testing and Australia, and it was a massive difference.
“Both drivers were happy actually with the car balance and driveability which is very important, but we have to keep going like this.”
Honda ran with reduced power in Australia with reliability fears but had both cars retire in Malaysia. Boullier says they have some work to do in this area if both cars are to finish every race.
“It’s definitely improved but we need to go another step,” he said of reliability.
“Obviously the ancillaries can be reliability developed on a dyno, and obviously we missed mileage in testing so we have to fix little things.”
Jenson Button who has been at the team since 2010 agreed that wins were still a long way off but is encouraged by the rapid signs of improvement by both McLaren and Honda.
“There is still a long way to go as there’s not so much you can do in two weeks, but what we have done is exceptional,” he said.
“The whole team should be proud of how they have stayed together and stayed positive, as it is not easy for any of us, but it’s good to see the progress.”
Image Courtesy Of McLaren F1 Team
