McLaren taking nothing for granted

The team boss claims McLaren have worked even harder to prepare their new car, especially with the batch of radical rule changes introduced in 2009.

"Despite our victory in the 2008 drivers' world championship we have taken nothing for granted in our preparations for the season ahead," said Dennis.

"Indeed, if anything, our efforts to fully understand this period of huge regulatory change have been more thorough and concerted than ever before.

"And while the scale of the technical changes makes it difficult to accurately assess the true competitive outlook of the year ahead, as a team we can feel proud of our efforts and look forward to another close season of Formula One motor racing.

"As ever, we exist to win and our target remains the successful acquisition of both this year's drivers' and constructors' world titles."

McLaren's F1 CEO Martin Whitmarsh conceded the regulation changes are making it very hard to predict who will have the upper hand this year.

"Such profound changes to the sport make it difficult to predict which teams will have most successfully developed their cars for the new technical regulations," he said.

"These rules have presented us with considerable challenges throughout the design process of MP4-24 but we have thoroughly interpreted all their ramifications in order to design a car we can feel proud of.

"We are also optimistic that the Overtaking Working Group's findings will help create a more thrilling and exciting sport that will provide greater entertainment and value to our biggest customers: the general public."

World champion Lewis Hamilton admitted the launch of the new car was emotional for him, as the MP4-24 sports the number one.

"The arrival of a new car is always an emotional moment for any racing driver - and the unveiling of MP4-24 is even more special for me, not only because the car looks absolutely stunning but also because it carries the world champion's number one.

"I believe this year's world championship is open, given the new rule changes and that's a great prospect for every Formula One fan. Personally, I'm hoping for another successful season and the chance to once again fight for the title - until the final race if necessary, but preferably before!"