Assessment: McLaren Scores Big Points in Shanghai

McLaren had only scored two points in two Grand Prix. Today, with a 5th and 6th position at the finish, the British team leaves the Middle Kingdom with nine points in the world championship, enough to be the 4th force in the championship. A rather satisfying result that rewards the efforts made.

Kovalainen had an error-free race, and although starting further back than Hamilton, he finished just ahead of him. The Englishman, the reigning world champion, attacked throughout the race, spinning out several times. Both men scored points and eagerly await Bahrain to score more. The new diffuser should help achieve this objective.

Heikki Kovalainen – 5th:

The visibility was incredibly poor, especially during the first laps after the Safety Car returned to the pits. Fortunately, our pace was good and in the last laps of the race I was able to close in to threaten Rubens [Barrichello] but I ran out of time to attack and overtake him.

« Our strategy worked well, I think a better position would not have been possible today and I’m really happy to have scored these four points without making a mistake despite difficult times lately. »

Lewis Hamilton – 6th:

« I made a few too many mistakes today. The track was very slippery, and my front-left tire wore out well before the end of my race, I did the best I could. It was a real battle on the track, but I’m very happy to have still brought points to the team. »

Martin Whitmarsh – Director

« First of all, I would like to offer our warmest congratulations to Red Bull Racing on their first victory. Sebastian Vettel had a very good race and it’s also nice for our old friend Adrian Newey. »

As for us, Kovalainen scored big points, impressing with his 5th place, without making any mistakes, while even though Hamilton made a few, he attacked fully all the time and also finished the race very well, congratulations to them.

« We knew we couldn’t compete with the Red Bulls or Brawn GP today, which is why we opted for a one-stop strategy. With the rain, this strategy worked well. It’s therefore encouraging, and we will do the necessary work to keep progressing and fight for victory next time. »