While we always tend to listen when former F1 champions predict what will happen in the future, this time one can’t help but feel that Mansell is being a bit too optimistic.
Both Jenson Button as well as McLaren hail from England, which is why we’re not surprised to hear that someone like Mansell is trying to blow a little air underneath their wings for next year. With 5 races still to go, there is time for McLaren-Honda to add to their point tally, though odds are they’ll remain second to last, right behind Sauber.
While speaking to BBC Sport, Mansell went on to say that “Jenson deserves an opportunity to see if they can compete and win next year. I think this winter Honda can make a breakthrough and McLaren will be working so, so hard. They are a fantastic team. They’ve won so much in the past and, to use [McLaren chairman] Ron Dennis’s words, they will win again in the future. I have no doubt about that.”
Button was recently confirmed for the 2016 season, which means that growing pains or not, he’ll be there to further develop the car – which hopefully won’t be as crucial to their chances as it would seem right now.
The 1992 F1 Champion also said that McLaren “Between Alonso and Jenson they will be a formidable team, given the car and the engine to do the job. Hopefully within 12 months they’ll be singing the praises of the team and Honda. I sincerely hope they’ll be winning races in a year’s time.”
Now, it may not be overly optimistic of somebody to think that McLaren will win again, because they’ll obviously win again…at some point. But as soon as next year? Those Honda-powered cars will have to out-muscle Mercedes, Ferrari, and probably a feisty Renault works team as well.
Even though Mansell thinks that Honda can make a breakthrough this winter, we tend to be a bit more reserved. After all, we really gave them the benefit of the doubt before this season and we ended up having to listen to Honda admit that they underestimated how difficult it would be to compete this year.
Story references: planetf1
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