McLaren 'turmoil' bad for F1 - Horner

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner says Formula 1 is worse off for McLaren's current state of "turmoil" as the famous team tries to return to their former glories. A slew of key personnel departures and now the impending exit of Fernando Alonso have capped a miserable 2018 camapign for McLaren.

Pre-season promises that a switch from Honda to Renault power units - which Red Bull have won three races with this year - fell flat at McLaren, with Alonso's fifth-place finish in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix still their best result of the season.

Only Ferrari have entered and won more grands prix and produced more drivers' champions than McLaren, but the British squad has not won a race since the end of the 2012 season.

"McLaren is a great team," Horner told Motorsport. "It's got huge history – it's, I think, the second most winning team in Formula 1 – so Formula 1 needs McLaren to be performing at a high level.

"They've obviously got their challenges at the moment, and obviously look in a bit of turmoil, but hopefully within time they'll manage to address that."

Alonso's departure is another blow for McLaren, while the Spaniard's summation of modern-day F1 points to an inability in the team to turn around their fortunes any time soon.

"For young drivers or different drivers, it is tough because they just hope that next year the team does an unbelievable step or they receive a call from one or two teams," Alonso said at Silverstone ahead of the latest round of the World Endurance Championship.

"It has become difficult for ambitious drivers. For a driver with some kind of ambition, it will be tough for the future if things don't change."