McLaren executive director Zak Brown has insisted Fernando Alonso’s retention was not dependent on the British team changing engine supplier for 2018.
The future of the Spaniard was one of the main stories of last year, with the double world champion frustrated at the lack of competitiveness and the number of problems having to be solved with the Honda power unit.
There would be rumours he issued “ultimatums” to McLaren, telling them he would leave if they didn’t drop the Japanese manufacturer, however, Brown maintains that was not the case.
“He just wanted us to be competitive again,” he said at the Autosport International show. “I think he would have stayed if we felt we’d been competitive staying where we were [with Honda]. I think he would have bought into that.”
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Instead, the Woking-based team did eventually lose their patience, switching to Renault power for this season, a company Alonso has a “great history with” as the McLaren boss pointed out.
Though there are expectations the change will put them on a similar level to Red Bull, the American entrepreneur isn’t promising anything to his lead driver.
“We want to get back to the front,” Brown simply claimed. “He [Alonso] knows that. He knows what we’re capable of.
“He really enjoys the team,” he added. “He pushes everyone. When he comes into the garage, everyone raises their game, our interests are aligned.”