Vandoorne-Boullier at Odds on McLaren Pressure

McLaren racing director Eric Boullier and driver Stoffel Vandoorne have differing opinions on assessing pressure. As the Woking squad begins a new venture with engine partner Renault, they are out to regain their former glory. The team is raring to go, but Eric Boullier downplayed talks of pressure building. The Frenchman said, “We do not feel additional pressure. On the contrary. The team is motivated by the fact that we will have two strong rivals in Red Bull and Renault.”

However, McLaren driver Stoffel Vandoorne isn’t convinced. He believes that McLaren’s partnership with Renault will lead to comparison with front-runner Red Bull and the works outfit. The Belgian said that there will be pressure to perform. He continued, “In 2018 the pressure on the team is big because we have big points of comparison next to us.Red Bull won races last season and Renault has also done well, so the pressure is there. But it is also positive and we need it to progress.”

Vandoorne’s debut season was a difficult one, finding himself on the receiving end of Honda’s reliability woes. Besides that, he struggled to adapt in the early part of the season compared to team mate Fernando Alonso. the 25-year old said, “I still have work to do to be able to put a weekend together and better understand the car. The speed is there if I put all the elements together. We have not set a goal for the season. For me, my point of reference is Fernando Alonso even if I focus mainly on myself. The results last year were not what I expected but I am now much stronger for the new season.”

McLaren have announced that they will unveil the MCL33 charger on February 23. Vandoorne has already had a go in the simulator and gave his first impression. He said, “I had my first day in the simulator and with the engineers and we were able to discuss a lot about the new car. I had my first feeling of the 2018 car — the change (to Renault) will be great for us. Everyone is motivated to start testing and see what we can do on the track. We will know a little more about how the season will unfold in Barcelona.”