Fernando Alonso drove just six laps on the first day of winter testing, and his best time was 18 seconds worse than the best time of day taken by Sebastian Vettel in Ferrari.
The Spaniard spent most of the day in the garage due to problems with the electrical wiring and control systems of Honda’s six-cylinder in its MP4-30. McLaren has lagged behind in terms of the number of laps taken by the other teams, but no worried faces can be seen in their camp yet. Honda promises to have solutions ready for the problems, which will allow the team a more constructive day as testing continues.
“I can’t go into details, but it was about electrical problems and control problems, but nothing serious,” explained Honda sporting boss Yasuhisa Arai. “We have already solved the problems. We found out what happened and we made some changes overnight, so Monday will be more constructive. ”
Arai explained that McLarn in Jerez faced completely different problems than the tests in Abu Dhabi last year. “We had communication problems in Abu Dhabi, but we fixed them before we started these tests. Today we encountered other problems, as the car is brand new. ”
However, Fernando Alonso is not worried about the problem either. “We more or less expected such a start. Last year, all the teams had a hard time accumulating laps, especially in the first days, Even Red Bull drove only ten laps a day in all pre-season tests.
Today, we have complex technology in race cars, so it takes time. We have a lot to learn while accumulating miles with a drill. It is an aggressive race car design, very extreme and innovative, so we still have a lot to discover.
I’d like to drive more laps, that’s for sure, because after a long two-month break, six laps isn’t enough. But we are all happy and excited. There was an amazing atmosphere in the garage in the spirit of McLaren Honda’s return after 22 years.
I was honored and privileged to be the one sitting in the car. We have a lot of work to do, but I have a lot of confidence in the project and I am happy to be here, ”added Alonso.
Photos: McLaren
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