McLaren Racing Director Eric Boullier claims the key to managing Fernando Alonso is to understand the competitive desire that burns within the double Formula 1 world champion.

The Spaniard has been considered one of the hardest drivers to control on the grid during his career, something that was first noticeable during his first year with McLaren in 2007 when he and the team fell out and a tumultuous relationship with then-rookie Lewis Hamilton emerged. 

That was followed by his difficult stint at Ferrari where Alonso became the clear number one driver but the frustrations at the Italian team's lack of competitiveness eventually became too much. 

If anything, the three years at McLaren have been even harder with engine partner Honda struggling to find their feet since returning in 2015, however, rather than the combative attitude we have seen before, the 36-year-old has been determined and has become known for his sarcastic responses to adversity.

"Fernando has had a reputation for being quite a handful to manage when really he is not," Boullier told F1i.com about the effect his presence in the team has. "Once you've understood his hunger for performance, it's quite easy to deal with this character trait. Of course, you can imagine that he is quite chagrined in light of our recent results."

Despite McLaren's and therefore Alonso's disappointment and frustration at the current situation, what has been impressive is how he has maintained motivation to perform at his best but, according to the Frenchman, that comes naturally to the man from Oviedo.

"What makes Fernando stand out compared to the others is the vital need he has to be competitive. All he cares about is winning, winning, winning, in everything he tries his hand at," he explained. You may be racing him at your local go-kart track or play tennis against him, he will give 200% to come out on top.

"Fernando's entire life is centered around that need to perform and win. I would not say he is a monk but he is only interested in competing. This is a great quality but it might have led to some misunderstanding about what his expectations are. Fernando might have his character, expectations, and conditions but he is not like the guy he is sometimes portrayed.

"Driving wise, he makes almost no mistake and is able to extract the quintessential performance of the car from the very first lap at the wheel," he added. "This is something I had never seen with any other driver before. From the very first run, you know you can use the telemetry data because the limits of the car have already been explored."

Given that desire to win, it is often thought that having the position of being a teammate to Alonso is one of the hardest and most challenging in F1. Previously, that may have been true if you consider his time with Hamilton and later Felipe Massa at Ferrari, but his current teammate Stoffel Vandoorne is enjoying the privilege of learning from the most experienced driver on the grid.

“For me, it’s a very good opportunity to have Alonso next to me,” he told Autosport Middle East. “He’s a double champion, one of the greatest drivers in Formula 1 and for me it’s just good to be next to a guy like him he has a lot of experience.

“He’s always there in every situation and for my experience that’s the best thing especially in this difficult start of the season.”