Whitmarsh welcomes 'solid' points finish

Heikki Kovalainen finished in fifth position at Shanghai, one place ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton as the team score its first double points finish of the season.

Whitmarsh said that, considering the speed of the McLaren, the result was welcome.

"I think it's great for the team to get some proper solid points," Whitmarsh said. "It's strange after the rather bizarre start to the year to be fourth in the constructors' currently, but the team certainly deserves it. We've worked very, very hard.

"But on the other hand, we know our car isn't very competitive at the moment so we've got a lot of work to do to ensure that at every race now we come along and make it quicker. A long way to go. But a reasonable result in the circumstances."

Whitmarsh also praised Hamilton's performance in China, despite the Briton's errors during the event.

"I think we didn't have the pace of Red Bull or Brawn so to be fifth and sixth was good, I think," he added. "Lewis pushed like hell all the way through the race, took a few chances. In reality he could have potentially been a little bit higher but I think he got up to fifth place early in the race and did a great job.

"I think if you're pushing that hard, you can fall off occasionally. I think that shows some self-belief and confidence, and that's what you want from a racing driver. So I think he did an excellent job.

"For Heikki, having had two very difficult races to start this season, I can't recall him making a single mistake in the race, which I imagine makes him fairly unique in the crowd."