McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh feels McLaren have not much to worry about – Formula 1 news
McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh believes that the company’s expanding business portfolio and the brand strength in the sport is a guarantee enough for him to feel confident about the team’s future.
He said he believes that the team will only get stronger in the near future.
“It will be stronger,” said Whitmarsh about the potency of the McLaren brand in an exclusive interview with AUTOSPORT. “Next year we celebrate our 50th anniversary, and we have been in F1 since 1966. We have won 25 per cent of the races; we have been on
the podium for 50 per cent of the races and we have won Le Mans. We are well placed for the future.”
The team is dealing with rumours surrounding its future plans of its engine for the 2014 season as well as the sponsorship backing for that year. Whitmarsh has insisted that the team’s engine manufacturer will remain Mercedes-Benz its current supplier but
Honda has also been linked to the team.
Vodafone the team’s current sponsor is also speculated to cut ties with the team under the turmoil of the economic downturn. The major telecommunications company’s current sponsorship of McLaren ends at the end of 2013.
Whitmarsh however feels that losing a major sponsor like Vodafone is not going to bother the company much as the team has built up a strong brand in Formula 1 and other companies will pounce on a chance to be able to sponsor a top level Formula 1 team.
He said, “We have 10 sponsors that have been with us for more than 15 years, and 15 years in sports sponsorship, let alone F1 sponsorship, is incredible. That diversity is part of the strength.”
It will be interesting to see how the team fares with these issues distracting the team. McLaren is placed second to Red Bull in the season with the third placed Lotus team only a point behind.
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