McLaren-Honda F1 pain is self inflicted, Ron Dennis concedes
Ron Dennis believes the "very acute pain" being felt by McLaren and Honda has primarily been self-inflicted as they have moved too fast too soon in their Formula 1 partnership
On the eve of last year's Japanese Grand Prix, McLaren Group CEO Dennis proudly proclaimed Honda's F1 power unit to be "a piece of jewellery", "mindblowing" and that "the competitiveness of the engine is going to be without question".
Following another miserable result at Suzuka, Honda's home circuit, Dennis was forced to defend the lack of progress in 2015.
"Timeframe in an engine term is very controlled by what is a shifting position on tokens, black box versus white box, the freezing of specific components," Dennis said.
"Only when you have significant improvement do you introduce an engine change with tokens, and theoretically, in an ideal world, that should be for every fourth race.
"We've tried to move forward faster and that has affected reliability, it's made the whole thing more challenging.
"In the end, this very acute pain we have inflicted to a certain degree on ourselves is the fastest way to get back to where we need to be."
Talks with Honda representatives in Japan were "extremely constructive", according to Dennis, who is adamant the company understands the depth of the problems.
"I don't believe there is any doubt at all that every level of Honda knows the challenge of Formula 1, and knows exactly where we are at the moment," he insisted.
"The way you build relationships and achieve things together is by coming together, not growing apart, by being transparent, understanding and working together to solve the issues."
Dennis feels the current regulations are proving a constraint on progress, and has called for greater freedom in a number of areas.
"The frustration I personally have with the regulations is virtually everything that is designed to reduce cost has increased it," he added.
"Primarily that is because the cost of durability means endless evaluation on the dyno and test cells.
"I'd like to go testing, to have freedom in the windtunnels and freedom in CFD.
"When you are uncompetitive you have to develop your way out of it, and at the moment the regulations are extremely constraining in that area."
Previous article
F1 teams lodge official EU complaint over 'unfair' structure
Next article
Toro Rosso F1 engine situation 'more critical' than Red Bull's
How Monza only added more questions to F1's sprint race conundrum
With two sprint races under its belt, Formula 1 must now consider its options for them going forward. While they've helped deliver exciting racing on Sundays, the sprints themselves have been somewhat lacking - creating yet another conundrum for F1 to solve...
Who should Alfa Romeo sign for 2022's F1 season?
OPINION: With Valtteri Bottas already signed up for 2022, all eyes are on the race for the second seat at Alfa Romeo next year. Antonio Giovinazzi is the current incumbent, but faces a tough competition from appealing short and long-term prospects
The "forced break" that was key to Ricciardo's Monza excellence
OPINION: Daniel Ricciardo has long been considered one of Formula 1’s elite drivers. But his struggles at McLaren since switching from Renault for 2021 have been painful to watch at times. Yet he’s recovered to banish those memories with a famous Monza win – built on a critically important foundation
How Verstappen is ruining his F1 title battle with Hamilton
OPINION: The Italian GP clash between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen followed a running theme in the 2021 Formula 1 title fight. Their close-quarters battles have often resulted in contact - and although Hamilton has shown a willingness to back off, Verstappen must learn to temper his aggression
Italian Grand Prix Driver Ratings
Two drivers produced maximum-score performances as, for the second year in a row, Monza threw up an unpredictable result that left several others ruing what might have been
Why Ricciardo was set for Monza F1 triumph even without Verstappen/Hamilton crash
The clash between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton was the major flashpoint the 2021 Italian Grand Prix will be remembered for. Yet by this point, race leader Daniel Ricciardo had already done the hard work that would put him in position to end his and McLaren's lengthy win droughts, on a memorable afternoon in Monza
Why Italian GP success is on for McLaren even if Verstappen dominates
For the second time in 2021, McLaren will line up for the start of a grand prix from the first row. It knows it has the chance of “glory” if things go well for Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris at the start of the 2021 Italian Grand Prix, but even if they just maintain their grid positions, signs from the rest of the Monza weekend suggest success is very possible for Formula 1’s other orange army
The F1 media favourite who lifted a broken Lotus
Graham Hill was nearly 30 when he made his Formula 1 debut. NIGEL ROEBUCK examines the life of a gifted racer whose talismanic personality defined an era
