Both Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button retired in Canada
Monday 15 June 2015 15:40, UK
After another difficult weekend for McLaren in Canada where both their cars retired, the team's COO and acting CEO Jonathan Neale spoke to Sky Sports F1.
On a scale of one to ten, how are you feeling?
“It was difficult and after a race like that it is tough to put a smile on. The last time we looked at the regulations it was four engines for a season, not four for a weekend, so we have a bit of work to do. It wasn’t a great day by anyone’s standards today, but that’s what it is, we have to face it and get on with it.”
How do you deal with it? McLaren build the car and Honda build the engine, how long before that partnership starts to develop in a positive way?
“I am not going to use any other names, but I have stood here talking to journalists with double DNFs and engines blowing up left right and centre with some people who are now right at the front. If you look at the introduction of the V8s, when we were running there and we were blowing up left, right and centre so it is not a good place to be, but unfortunately it is part of a rite of passage on this. But at a senior level the guys are pushing really hard on this.”
How hamstrung are you by only having seven tokens left for the rest of the season?
“We have enough reliability issues to fix there that we can do without the tokens. So I don’t think tokens is the issue at all, we just need time.”
What is the mood of the drivers like? Are they accepting it or are they starting to ask questions about why it is so bad?
“To be honest I think everyone is asking questions about what we are doing at the moment. It is true, it is a matter of fact that we have closed the gap this season to this point. But we are not going to sit here and say that anyone is happy with the current level of performance, you heard the lift and coast fuel saving that was going on, but the reality is we’ve just got to work through this, it isn’t going to get better by itself. We are committed to our engine partner, we are going to win or lose as a team and I am not about to do what other teams have done and start tearing apart the relationship between the chassis manufacturer and the engine manufacturer. The fact is we have a job to do.”
Do you see a silver lining any time soon and what is that silver lining? What is your primary goal for this season?
“The primary goal for this season is to keep moving forward as we have done. We have closed a gap of around 2.5 seconds, we’ve got two seconds to go, that is a huge way, but we knew it was going to be a difficult weekend with a circuit like this. But watch us over the next few races, ask us in two or three races time, I think there is a lot to come.”
What positives are there for the team?
“We look at the stuff that is coming through, we know we have invented stuff that is not yet at the circuit, we have to deliver it. So for all the guys at Woking it is the usual message, head down, let’s push on with it and we’ll take the next race.”
