TALKING to the press before this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso said that McLaren Honda will sooner, rather than later, be taking the fight to Mercedes.
Alonso is confident after several big strides have been made this year, with more to come, that the wizards from Woking will soon be competitive with the best.
McLaren Honda have now sorted out their energy recovery system (ERS) so that it now operates at a very high level. This was their major shortcoming last year.
As soon as they are ready they will introduce an upgraded engine for the second time this year.
This was confirmed by Honda F1 chief Yusuku Hasagawa, who confirmed that the team will show some notable gains in the very near future.
Other news in the motor racing world is that Ferrari may be considering replacing Kimi Raikkonen at the end of the season and that Daniel Ricciardo is one of the names on the shortlist.
What about teammate Max Verstappen? There must be more than one team keen to sign up the high-speed Hollander!
This weekend’s racing takes place at the picturesque setting of the Spielberg circuit in the rolling green hills among the beautiful Styrian Mountains.
The circuit is nearly 50 years old and is a classic. It will be very interesting to see whether anyone can beat the lap record set up by Michael Schumacher at 1min 8.3 seconds in 2003.
The Mercedes twins of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton are obvious favourites for the race but we can expect tough opposition from Ferrari, Red Bull and Williams.
We shall see whether McLaren Honda can put their money where their mouth is straight after Alonso making this week’s bold claim. Maybe they can surprise us?
I think the excitement will come from Sebastian Vettel’s Ferrari and Max Verstappen’s Red Bull Renault chasing the two Silver Arrows.
Qualifying is 1.50pm on Saturday and the main race starts at 2pm on Sunday.
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