F1 2018: McLaren's Slow Side into Oblivion

Is there a way out?

With one of the biggest budgets on the grid and two young drivers with plenty of potential in Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris for 2019, things could easily be on the up for McLaren next year. After Fernando Alonso declared "Now we can Fight!" in an excited radio message at this year's Australian GP, McLaren appeared to be the fourth best team in the pecking order, a huge step up from 2017. The team had constantly blamed their engine supplier (Honda) for their lack of pace from 2015-17, stating that their chassis was one of the best on the grid. Now, with Renault power, we know that's not the case, as the papaya-coloured racers have been consistently slower than the Red Bulls and works Renault cars for most of the season.

Niki Lauda's arrival at McLaren dragged the team out of the doldrums like he did with Ferrari in the '70s

The team have been in a much worse position than what they are currently, though. The aforementioned early-80's were another bad period in the team's history, but after that, they were a cut above the rest. Under the stewardship of Ron Dennis, John Barnard designed the all-conquering MP4/2 in 1984 and with Niki Lauda at the wheel, the team won their first title of the 80's. From there, they didn't look back, winning five of the next seven constructor's championships.

It may take until 2021, but McLaren can never be discounted after a regulation shake-up, they've come back emphatically from even worse positions before, and they could easily do once more. If things go even more south, though, there's no telling what will happen to those bright orange cars.