Zak Brown says McLaren still have "a long way to go"

The team have an illustrious history in F1, winning 182 races since their debut in 1966, and are the second most successful team, behind Ferrari.

However, in recent times, the time has regressed, and hit a low point towards the end of last season, when they finished the campaign with the second worst car.

2019 has been better, with a fresh line up of Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris scoring regular points to sit the team comfortably in fourth place in the constructors' standings, behind only the three big guns of Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull.

Brown told RACER: “I definitely joined in probably the most difficult period in the team’s history, but to me that’s the exciting part.

“That’s the challenge. What we needed to do was provide clear leadership and direction, and ensure the right people were in the right places. I think we’re now going in the right direction. The decisions we have made are paying off, but there’s still a long way to go.

“The team has performed very well over the first half of the year, achieving the goals we set, whether that’s improving launches, pit-stops, the ultimate pace of the car, and of course both drivers have done an excellent job.

“We had a very good off-season, which saw us start to make changes. It’s good to see it all coming together, and I now have my leadership team in place with Andreas and James joining us.

“To ensure we finish fourth in the constructors’ championship, we need to execute the second half of the year well, like we have in the first half."