Fry: Honda must be competitive in 2008

The Brackley-based squad have failed to match their expectations this year after winning a race on their way to fourth place in the championship last season.

Honda are in ninth place in this year's standings, having scored just one point as their RA107 have proved uncompetitive.

The team, however, have began an intense quest for staff and have already signed key people to bolster their technical department.

Honda have signed BMW's Jorg Zander as their new deputy technical director and Frenchman Loic Bigois as head of aerodynamics.

Fry, whose team are still aiming to recruit a new technical director, says he is happy with the new signings and admits Honda will have no excuses if they fail to fight at the top in 2008.

"I'm impressed by what we've put together now," said Fry. "I've got a good feeling ­ we've got a strong design office what we've been missing is technical leadership in several areas. And aero in particular has been our Achilles' heel.

"In 2008, we need to be fully competitive. With the resources at the disposal, our technical team has no excuses.

"Next year's car will be an evolution not a revolution but we need a car capable of competing at the sharp end of the grid. People like hedging their bets, but we need the machinery to be operating back at the top."

Bigois began working at Honda this month, while Zander will join the team later in the year.

Fry says he expects Bigois' influence to be felt already this season.

"I'd expect to see Loic's influence on the car before the end of the year and for the whole new technical appointments to have finished gelling properly by the middle of next year," he said.