Haug admits that the new McLaren is too slow

While Mercedes powers the new Brawn GP team and they have performed remarkable tests in Barcelona, the same cannot be said for the other team powered by the German manufacturer; McLaren.

Inter-season tests have often been a reliable reference for the upcoming championship. The former McLaren driver, Fernando Alonso, who has returned today to his favorite team, observed the state of McLaren’s form in Barcelona this week: « The team conducted tests with its two drivers and the least that can be said is that the results are not promising. »

Felipe Massa from Ferrari, who lost the 2008 title by one point to Lewis Hamilton, is also surprised by the work of the Woking team, which is regularly one of the slowest teams.

The official word from the team at the end of testing is that the issue with the car has been identified and will likely be resolved before Melbourne.

« They can only improve. The team is heading back to Jerez for another round of tests that we are not participating in. They will be able to find what is not working, » declared Massa.

« Of course, it is surprising to see McLaren at the back of the pack, but out of respect we must wait for the first race of the season to get a clear idea of the matter, » he added.

The president of the McLaren group, Ron Dennis is optimistic about his team’s ability to solve these problems, but the head of Mercedes, Norbert Haug, seems much more reserved.

« We are far too slow at the moment, but we will work hard to return to the top positions, » he admitted in the interview with the German Deutsche Presse-Agentur.