McLaren-Mercedes have insisted they are confident there will be no re-occurrence of the tyre issues that hobbled
Lewis Hamilton and denied the Briton a shot at victory in the Turkish Grand Prix, as the
Formula 1 circus moves onto the jewel in its annual crown in Monaco.
Hamilton finished less than four seconds adrift of race-winner
Felipe Massa in Istanbul, but had he not had to stop three times due to fears over tyre durability – following the spectacular blow-out he had suffered there the previous year – he may well have been able to challenge for the top spot. McLaren CEO Martin Whitmarsh is convinced those problems will not re-surface around the winding, tortuous streets of Monte Carlo, traditionally a happy hunting ground for the Woking-based outfit, with no fewer than five triumphs in the Principality over the last decade.
“We are very confident that there will be no repeat of the tyre issues we experienced in Turkey with Lewis' car,” Whitmarsh asserted, “because the characteristics of the circuit are very different. The levels of aerodynamic force that are generated on the tyres and the tyre construction are much lower, and therefore there is no chance we will have that problem.
“At Monaco as we all work towards extracting the maximum performance from the tyres and the whole of the package, this historically leads to relatively soft compounds and this can provide a durability challenge. It's a different issue, but not one we are concerned about given the work we have done in this area with
Bridgestone.”
Indeed, McLaren shares a good deal of history with the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix, with team founder Bruce McLaren having made the marque's
F1 debut there back in 1966. Since then the squad has achieved a record 14 successes in the race, incredibly winning all but one of the events held there between 1984 –
McLaren's maiden victory in Monte Carlo – and 1993.
