Martin Whitmarsh determined to deliver in 2013 - Formula 1 news
McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh has refused to give up on the 2013 championship, despite not having a car that could not challenge rivals Red Bull, Lotus
and Mercedes for race victories in the first four rounds.
Last year, the Woking-based team performed really well and stayed in the title hunt until the end of the season. However, things have not worked out well for them
until now this year, as they simply lack the speed to fight at the front.
Even Force-India have shown better pace than McLaren on quite a few occasions, which suggests that the team needs a lot of hard work in order to start fighting
for podium finishes regularly.
Due to the lack of performance, there are some suggestions that McLaren should shift its focus to the 2014 challenger, as that would give them a head start over
rival teams.
However, Whitmarsh stated, “Maybe it is a character flaw, but I have made it reasonably clear from Australia that I am not even talking about 2014 at the moment.
One of my weaknesses is I want to be competitive. I want to get back to the front and I want to come to grands prix thinking we can win.”
He went onto say that he would like to see his drivers Jenson Button and Sergio Perez step on the top of the podium in the upcoming events.
According to the 54-year-old team principal, “The truth is, what I want to see is getting on the podium and getting on the top steps. Going racing when you don't
think you can win is not something I enjoy particularly, so I want to get back to the point where you are coming in on Thursday with the anticipation that we can win.”
At the moment, McLaren are way down in sixth place in the Constructor’s Championship and need some drastic changes in order to move up the order. Reigning world
champion team Red Bull is on top of the table after the first four events and they are followed by Lotus and Ferrari.
On the other hand, McLaren’s only driver in the top-10 is Button, one place ahead of Perez, who is in 11th place at the moment.
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