Formula 1 2019

[Backward point]

Did I miss mention of McLaren? They seem to have had some good runs during testing.

How could I forget McLaren? On the strength of the pre-season tests, they should be around the upper end of a very crowded midfield, the primary reservation being a lack of experience of the drivers (Sainz is good, but not yet a consistent front-runner, and nobody's expecting much from Lando Norris in his first year).

They have yet to sort out the management, and James Key won't be in situ for another few weeks, by which time the first three flyaway races will be over. Nobody with any sense of F1 history wants to see McLaren continue to struggle, and the same applies to Williams as well.

If you had told anybody during the late 1980's that McLaren and Williams would be at the bottom of the Constructors' Championship in 2018 they wouldn't have believed you. Bernie Ecclestone welcomed Eddie Jordan into Formula 1 with the words "Welcome to the piranha club". It's an uncompromising sport, but these days sport is business, and the weakest go to the wall.

I wish, for the sake of the sport, that McLaren and Williams can improve this year, and that Ferrari and Red Bull can provide a sustained challenge to Mercedes. On the evidence from Barcelona in the last two weeks, these wishes might just come true.

[jwillans]

How could I forget McLaren? On the strength of the pre-season tests, they should be around the upper end of a very crowded midfield, the primary reservation being a lack of experience of the drivers (Sainz is good, but not yet a consistent front-runner, and nobody's expecting much from Lando Norris in his first year).

They have yet to sort out the management, and James Key won't be in situ for another few weeks, by which time the first three flyaway races will be over. Nobody with any sense of F1 history wants to see McLaren continue to struggle, and the same applies to Williams as well.

If you had told anybody during the late 1980's that McLaren and Williams would be at the bottom of the Constructors' Championship in 2018 they wouldn't have believed you. Bernie Ecclestone welcomed Eddie Jordan into Formula 1 with the words "Welcome to the piranha club". It's an uncompromising sport, but these days sport is business, and the weakest go to the wall.

I wish, for the sake of the sport, that McLaren and Williams can improve this year, and that Ferrari and Red Bull can provide a sustained challenge to Mercedes. On the evidence from Barcelona in the last two weeks, these wishes might just come true.

Great write up - fingers crossed for a McLaren and Williams resurgence.