2016 Review – McLaren: Making progress while waiting for the big time

Key Figures

Constructor standings position: 6th

Pole: 0

Victory: 0

Podium: 0

Points: 76

Best result: 5th (Alonso: Monaco and United States)

Best qualification: 5th (Button: Austria)

A development through staffing adjustments

One year after the return of the legendary collaboration between McLaren and Honda as an engine supplier, this new entity knew it was being watched closely at the dawn of the season. It must be said that the previous year’s results were extremely chaotic and relations quickly became strained between the English and Japanese partners. While the McLaren chassis was not without its flaws, the Honda power unit suffered from a performance deficit compared to the competition and had reliability issues that needed significant improvement.

In order to revive the confidence of the Woking team, it’s time for a reshuffle at Honda, which appoints Yusuke Hasegawa as the head of its F1 program following the departure of Yasuhisa Arai. On the drivers’ side, Fernando Alonso insists and affirms his team’s ability to compete in the future against the previously undisputed leaders of the championship, Mercedes: “I think that only McLaren-Honda can beat them. I still believe it.”

The foundations laid by the MP4-31 on a technical level for the opening of the world championship seem relatively sound. Overall, the development of the car throughout the season remained steady with solid improvements to the Honda power unit at key stages (such as Silverstone and Spa) that helped reduce the deficit the Japanese V6 had against other engine manufacturers. Reliability, however, has remained a significant issue for the team and ultimately a burden since Honda’s return.

At McLaren-Honda, the 2017 season dominates everyone’s thoughts, a pivotal period with colossal stakes for the team. In this context, it’s time for an overhaul of the organizational structure where no one seems to be spared, not even Ron Dennis. The outgoing president of the McLaren group, who has been in conflict for some time with other shareholders of the British company, is replaced by former driver and luxury spokesperson Zak Brown, a sports marketing specialist expected to restore the manufacturer’s credibility commercially.

The duo of drivers is also shaken up with the departure of the 2009 world champion Button and the appointment of the very promising Stoffel Vandoorne. Initially announcing he would take a sabbatical year, Button confirmed what many observers had suspected, declaring that his departure as a main driver is indeed definitive. It is difficult to say whether this choice remains the decision of the English driver to keep only a consulting role within the Woking structure or if his team pushed him more authoritatively towards a development driver role.

Button distanced by Alonso and challenged by Vandoorne

The battle between the two drivers this season has largely turned to Alonso’s advantage: the Asturian Bull has scored more than twice as many points as his teammate, who did not shine in the qualifying exercise either, with a score of 15-4 in favor of the Spaniard in the qualifying match.

Although largely dominant within the McLaren team, the start of the season would prove eventful for Alonso. It was marked by a spectacular crash during the inaugural race of the season in Australia, following a contentious defensive maneuver by Esteban Gutierrez driving the Haas. An accident that forced the double world champion to take a break for the next Grand Prix in Bahrain, with the team’s development driver Stoffel Vandoorne stepping in.

The opportunity was unique for the Belgian to shine as he covets a seat promised by McLaren. In any case, he did not disappoint in his very first Formula 1 Grand Prix by scoring the point for 10th place on the Sakhir track, even having the luxury of finishing ahead of his world champion teammate Button. A result that will certainly weigh in the British team’s future decision to appoint the 2015 GP2 world champion for the 2017 season.

If Fernando Alonso repeatedly expresses his ambitions for his team and himself, he cannot perpetually hide a certain weariness. It has been known that he has long been interested in endurance racing while Porsche is ready to reserve him a spot, as the F1 world champion hinted in a congratulatory video addressed to his friend and now retired circuit racer Mark Webber. McLaren cannot afford to overlook the departure of such an experienced and crucial driver for their team as Alonso is.

**The Opportunity of the 2017 Technical Regulation Change**
The new technical regulations in 2017 offer new prospects to the McLaren-Honda team. While it is difficult to anticipate the hierarchy that will emerge for the first race of the season, it seems evident for the team that victory, which has eluded them since 2012, must be secured next year to avoid any crisis with inevitably detrimental effects on team motivation. In the meantime, McLaren’s new boss, Zak Brown, is doing everything to boost the team’s appeal to sponsors, especially as the team is still seeking a title sponsor vital for the group’s finances. The goal has been missed for 2017, so they will have to wait until 2018.

Finally, what will remain of Alonso’s involvement, already greatly shaken over the course of two years, especially if his young Belgian teammate were to challenge his position as the natural leader of the team on the track?

The construction of success is a matter of patience, the question remains whether McLaren-Honda possesses this virtue.

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