McLaren could go a decade without a race win

McLaren are braced to go without a grand prix win for more than a decade after Zak Brown revealed that a five-year plan has been put in place to return the team to the top step of the podium. McLaren's last win came in Brazil in 2012 via Jenson Button.

Only one race in the V6 Hybrid era has featured McLaren on the podium – its very first race back in 2014 in Australia as Kevin Magnussen and Button finished on the top three.

A switch to Honda power in 2015 backfired badly and McLaren once again failed to deliver on promises of a return to winning ways this year after switching to Renault power.

A wide-reaching personnel change has begun on the team, with Gil de Ferran and Andrea Stella appointed to senior roles, with Toro Rosso technical chief James Key to follow in 2019, and CEO Brown hopes the team is now on-track to regain its glory days.

"I have presented a five-year plan and within that plan, we think we have a journey to get back to winning races, and then once you're winning races, you're competing for the championship," Brown told Racer.

"I think it's critical that Liberty makes changes to the sport because right now, the way the sport is going, it's difficult for more than two or three teams to compete for the championship.

"So I think there are things that are out of our control, but hopefully we can influence that need to change for multiple teams to be able to win races and compete for the championship.

"We have laid out a journey and investment, a road to recovery that sees us getting back to the front of the grid in that timeline.

"I think from a time standpoint, clearly we need to show progress. The shareholders are extremely committed."

"We're hiring, so they're investing in the racing team, and I think anyone who invests wants to see a return and progress.

"So there's not a specific timetable in that X has to be achieved by Y date.

"I think what they want to see as we all want to see is us moving forward, but there's no specific timeline on that."

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