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Vandoorne "determined" to squeeze performance out of struggling McLaren

10:29, 29 Aug 2018

byNicolás Quarles van Ufford

After a very disappointing home race at Spa Francorchamps in which he was in last place all weekend long, Stoffel Vandoorne has said he's determined to get as much performance out of the struggling McLaren car as he possibly can.

Vandoorne is still in contention to keep his seat in 2019 despite his massively underwhelming season, in which he's failed to out-qualify his teammate Fernando Alonso a single time in thirteen tries. At Spa Francorchamps last weekend, he was the slowest car on the grid in all practice sessions, as well as in qualifying, before finishing last out of all remaining cars. Tough times for the Belgian.

“Obviously Monza will be a challenge for us, as we experienced in Belgium," he said on McLaren's website.

"Our car struggles on tracks that are high-speed and low downforce and this is probably the most extreme version of this.

“Despite this, the team is working as hard as ever to make the best of what we have each race weekend.

"I am as determined as they are to produce the best possible results given the limitations of our package."

Despite this, the Belgian will try to do his best to enjoy the circuit as well, as it's the third oldest circuit in the world at 96 years old. It's hosted the Formula One every single year since 1950, except for 1980.

“I really enjoy driving around Monza – it’s an incredible track with a huge amount of history.

"I think every Formula 1 driver appreciates the reputation it holds as one of the most famous and exciting tracks on the calendar."