McLaren Formula 1 boss Andreas Seidl admits leading the midfield again is the only goal possible in 2020.
Last year, the British team made tremendous gains to move up from battling at the back with Williams at the end of 2018 to finishing 'best of the rest', 54 points ahead of Renault in the Constructors' standings.
But with still such a significant gap to the top three teams of Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull, Seidl admits challenging them is unrealistic.
“I am expecting a hard fight for fourth place again,” he told Auto Motor und Sport. “That is the maximum that is currently possible in Formula 1 given the current budgets."
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That's why McLaren, like many teams, are more eager to look past this year and concentrate on the all-new cars coming for 2021.
“We still see enough weak spots in the team that we have to work on so we have to show that we are developing in those areas, that is exactly why it is important to have a good 2020 season," the German explained.
“It is clear to me that this year will be a balancing act in terms of when we flick the switch fully to 2021. Logically, this will happen earlier than usual.”
Even with the new regulations, including a $175m budget cap, in place however, Seidl acknowledges McLaren will still have to be patient because of the likely head start the top teams could get.
“If we look towards the cap, the owners of the team have made clear to us that we can operate on that level and that is a great signal for the team because we then have the ability to get to the top,” he said.
“But that won’t happen in 2021. After the start of the new regulations, it will take time for the budget cap to take effect. So I don’t expect to be on the podium and having victories until 2023.”
