- McLaren
Boullier certain McLaren will be competitive in Spain
Eric Boullier is convinced McLaren will be back in the hunt for a podium in Spain despite failing to score a point in its last two races.
McLaren was confident it was the quickest car behind Mercedes during the flyaway races but suffered a double retirement in Bahrain, followed by a miserable weekend in China out of the points. Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen finished 11th and 13th in Shanghai but Boullier believes the team has turned a corner in the three weeks since then.
When asked whether McLaren would be back in the mix, Boullier said: "Definitely. This is 100% sure. What we have seen on the track has been one thing, but back in the factory we know what is going to happen in the next three or four races.
"I know what is going on, that we are on a very good development rate. What we have picked up over the past few weeks is good, very good. While not all of the steps we have taken will be in evidence in Barcelona, they mark the start of a fresh push and spirit within the whole organisation."
Boullier admits the team knows exactly why it was struggling to compete in the final flyaway races.
"We have been lacking downforce, we know this, which has had a direct effect on tyre wear and tyre degradation. We know where we have had to address the issues on the car, and we have been working on it.
"Another issue is the range of performance on our car is weather dependent - if it is too hot we are out, too cold we are out. That is all because we are missing downforce and we cannot exploit the tyres as easily as Mercedes and Red Bull."
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
