For a quarter of the season McLaren could find themselves scrapping for the
minor points, simply due to the distances involved, and because teams cannot
react as quickly as they might do closer to home.
You cannot escape the fact that there is pressure upon Martin Whitmarsh as
team principal, for in the end, the captain of the ship is responsible for
its navigation.
Ultimately, Martin is accountable in the same way that the technical director
and the driver is. But F1 is not a sport where people shy away from
responsibility. It is one of the best businesses for accountability that I
have ever come across. Any evidence of a lack of commitment, lack of focus,
or an inability to deliver consistently, is immediately addressed. Failure
is not an option.
What the shareholders or what the McLaren board will do at any given point is
to ask: “What was the reason for that success or failure?” You do not win by
accident any more than you lose by accident.
I worked at McLaren under Ron Dennis rather than Martin, and Ron always used
to say: “I don’t design the car.” Instead he would give the people the right
power, the right salaries, the right environment. I would imagine that Ron
has passed on the same message and that Martin is using those very words,
trying to bring people together. I am not aware of any major headhunting
recently, but I am aware of certain people leaving, not least Lewis
Hamilton and Paddy Lowe on the technical side. There will be
question marks, but I still do not feel you can shine the spotlight on one
individual.
How McLaren must wish they were in Lotus’s position this week. Lotus have
built a very well-designed, well-engineered car, and Kimi is building upon
the remarkable consistency that he achieved last year. He showed in
Australia that he had hit the ground running, that he was sharp and focused,
that he knew exactly what the strategy was. He is an exceptional driver and
he produced a masterclass in disciplining the machine below him. It was an
exhibition of world-class driving. Having the experience of handling these
cars for quite some years, I appreciate the demands he had to take on to
achieve that victory.
What we can say about Lewis Hamilton, too, is that once Mercedes find the
right track temperature for their particular car, then he is going to be
right in the mix. He fell away in Australia because the team could not
execute the tyre plan properly – they wanted to do two stops but did not
quite manage it.
But, Hamilton fans, hold your breath. It will not be long before he is hunting
for a podium, perhaps even at the next grand prix.