Haug: McLaren's woes not over yet

Wow, that is a bad record for McLaren at Barcelona. 1 win in 8 years? Anyway, it is to be expected that they won't do well there as the last few years showed that this track does not suit their car. But it doesn't mean we can't be hopeful. We are always hopeful at every race.

Tuesday 5th May 2009

McLaren are bracing themselves for another tough weekend in Spain, according to Mercedes motorsport director Norbert Haug.

The Woking outfit are languishing in fourth position in the Constructors' Championship after Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen accumulated just 13 points between them in the first four races of the season.

Fans, though, were hopeful that Hamilton's fourth-place finish in Bahrain was just the shot in the arm the team needed to turn their season around.

However, Haug has been quick to dismiss any suggestions that things are looking up for the race in Barcelona.

"I do not have the impression that there has been a dramatic improvement. If I say we will struggle, I am not being a prophet of doom," he is quoted by Germany's Deutsche Presse-Agentur.

McLaren, one of the few teams who have decided not to introduce major upgrades in Barcelona, have a poor record at the Circuit de Catalunya, winning just one race in the last eight years.

The team also failed to impress during pre-season testing at the circuit with Hamilton and Kovalainen finishing last on the first two days of the four-day test.

Source : Planet F1