BAHRAINSPORTS
APRIL 2014
M
McLAREN
18
cLaren have been one of the surprise
teams of the Formula One pre-season,
largely due to the strong performances of
Danish rookie Kevin Magnussen, who has taken
the place of Mexican Sergio Perez.
Jenson Button is always one who will fight for
the best result, although his car last year did not
match his drive to succeed.
But with the arrival of Eric Boullier as racing
director, a mature Magnussen beside him and a
promising showing from their car during the winter tests, things could change for the 2009 World
champion.
Button, however, has echoed the sentiment of
most of the grid, as he himself is unsure of what’s
in store for 2014.
“This year, I don’t think anybody knows quite
what to expect,” said Button. “Will we see more
than half the field at the end of the race? Will we
see good, close racing? Will the pecking order
pan out as we expect? Those are all questions that
we’ve yet to see answered.
t h e g a m e sports magazine
“Nonetheless, I do think the potential is there:
the MP4-29 (car) has given us what last year’s
MP4-28 didn’t – namely, a reliable and predictable
platform upon which we can build and develop. In
every respect, this year’s car feels different to last
year’s, and that makes me excited.”
Magnussen is coming off a championship-winning season in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series, and
hopes that he can bring along some of that fortune
into Formula One. He has certainly showed he has
the potential to do so.
“I think we had a solid winter,” said Magnussen, who had set the pace on different occasions
during the pre-season.
“We know we have a lot of work left to do, but
we have a good basis from which to go forward.
We know where the car is strong, and where
there’s more work left to do - and we’re addressing
those areas.
“But I’ve said it all along: the car is driveable
and predictable; it does what we ask it to do, which
is a positive.” THE GAME