DC will struggle says McLaren team boss

The Scot, who won last year's race, has had a series of problems all weekend, culminating in the niggling problem of accidentally going out in warm-up with the front wing covers still on his car.

He starts fifth, behind both rivals; team mate Mika Hakkinen on pole and Ferrari's Michael Schumacher fourth.

"Because of the various problems we are a little bit behind," he admitted on Sunday morning. "It is not easy to win from that position but we should be able to be competitive and get a good result."

He added that his McLaren team did not fear the rain that almost inevitably began to fall early on race morning.

"Being wet makes things a bit of a lottery. We don't fear the rain but motor racing is better in the dry. I'm not sure which way the weather is going at the moment. There are some indications it may dry up - not enough for the start of the race but perhaps so there is a chance of an early stop for slicks."