Frenchman insists still no decision taken on line-up as Fernando Alonso speculation continues; "We need a mix of experience and eagerness," adds Boullier
Monday 3 November 2014 18:36, UK
Eric Boullier has defended McLaren’s delay in deciding on their driver line-up for 2015, insisting they have to make the right call for the long-term success of the team.
The Woking outfit’s pursuit of Fernando Alonso, an open secret in F1 for months, has left incumbents Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen waiting on their futures, with one set to make way should the Spaniard return to the team seven years after a single tumultuous season there.
Button, who has been with McLaren since 2010, was quoted as saying at last weekend’s Russian GP that the prolonged wait to learn about his future was “actually getting funny”, the 34-year-old looking to be desperately short on competitive options elsewhere should McLaren not retain his services for next year.
Despite the continued speculation over Alonso, who is set to leave Ferrari to be replaced by Sebastian Vettel, Boullier has insisted in an interview with F1’s official website that “there is still no decision yet” on McLaren’s 2015 line-up. He stressed that the team needed to put their priorities first.
“I always said that we are working on the strategy for the coming years - plural - which means we could take on a big name now, or even two big names for next year, or we could stay the same and go for a big name - or again two big names - for 2016,” Boullier, McLaren’s Racing Director, said.
“We are still assessing what we should do, as it is a big decision that will obviously be driving our success for the medium term. If we take the wrong decision we could be successful in the short term but maybe not in the long term.
“And we are in the comfortable position of being able to wait. I know that doesn’t make it comfortable for Jenson and Kevin, but I have to think about McLaren first. We have to make sure we make the right decision.”
Put to him that it would be hard to imagine Button, F1’s most experienced driver, suddenly without a seat on the grid in 2015, Boullier replied: “That is a question for Jenson’s management. My job is to make McLaren win.”
With McLaren already rekindling their past all-conquering partnership with Honda next year, the arrival of two-times World Champion Alonso, widely regarded as the most complete driver on the grid, to spearhead their new era would undoubtedly represent an additional coup for a team which last won a race in 2012.
Boullier says he wants a driver line-up for 2015 that helps galvanise the team amid their attempts to return to the front of the grid.
“I will not tell you much about this - just this much: we need a mix of experience and eagerness,” he added. “In this time of recovery for McLaren I need a boost, so our driver line-up needs to be boosting the team’s morale and team’s determination to reach as quickly as possible the level where we should be.”
Boullier told reporters on Tuesday that he expected McLaren to confirm their 2015 line-up before the end of the season
