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London - McLaren team chief Martin Whitmarsh has agreed he is feeling the pressure but does not fear the future despite his team’s hugely disappointing and error-filled British F1 GP weekend.
Whitmarsh took over as McLaren’s team principal from to Ron Dennis two years earlier.
He said the combination of under-fuelling Briton Lewis Hamilton's car and failing to fit a wheel properly to Jenson Button's car had left him feeling down.
"It was not one of the best GP's I've had," he said. "We didn't want to let the fans down - but we did."
STRATEGY ERROR
McLaren, in a season of frustration and inconsistency, has won only twice - once with each driver – and has struggled against a dominant Red Bull crew and its defending World champion Sebastian Vettel.
Button qualified fifth, Hamilton 10th – the latter after a strategy error left him without a chance to beat a rain shower and clock a faster lap time - then both were hit by further team errors.
Hamilton has been linked with a move to Red Bull (or somewhere) in 2012, Button is also said to be frustrated.
It is clear that standards have fallen for a team that grew up fighting for titles with great drivers and champions such as Frenchman Alain Prost, Brazilian Ayrton Senna, Finn Mika Hakkinen and Hamilton with his 2008 title.
Whitmarsh said of Hamilton's plight, when he had to conserve fuel in the closing laps and slipped away from a potential podium finish, "for a racing driver, it is hard to save fuel. It's counter-intuitive to be told to slow down. The car also becomes harder to drive as the tyres and brakes cool ".
'I'M NOT A CLONE'
Whitmarsh, admitting the strain, added: "I'm confident I will stay in my job. I answer to the board, not just to Ron (Dennis, chairman of the McLaren Group). They seem happy with the job I'm doing.
"For now, anyway...
“I’ve been here for 23 years and worked with Ron for 23 years. Some people thought I was a clone of Ron but I’m not. We have an interesting relationship - we have ups and downs - but it is strong at the moment.
"And I am hard on myself - even harder than you guys in the news media are on me - but doing the job I am doing is an addiction and success in F1 is cyclical. We’re judged by high standards at this team and that's something I welcome."
If it is not yet a crisis for McLaren, there was a sense of high tension during the Silverstone weekend as Hamilton, in dazzling form, made his way from 10th to fourth and fought off Brazilian Felipe Massa of Ferrari in wheel-banging style at the final corner.
STAY PUT, SAYS DAD
His head may be turned by rival teams - though Red Bull appears keener to keep Australian Mark Webber than bring Hamilton in as team mate to Vettel - but his father Anthony, also his former manager, believes he should, and will, stay at the team he joined as 12-year-old.
"My advice to Lewis would be to stay," he said. "At McLaren he has an opportunity to bring everybody together rather than pulling them apart."
Whitmarsh took over as McLaren’s team principal from to Ron Dennis two years earlier.
He said the combination of under-fuelling Briton Lewis Hamilton's car and failing to fit a wheel properly to Jenson Button's car had left him feeling down.
"It was not one of the best GP's I've had," he said. "We didn't want to let the fans down - but we did."
STRATEGY ERROR
McLaren, in a season of frustration and inconsistency, has won only twice - once with each driver – and has struggled against a dominant Red Bull crew and its defending World champion Sebastian Vettel.
Button qualified fifth, Hamilton 10th – the latter after a strategy error left him without a chance to beat a rain shower and clock a faster lap time - then both were hit by further team errors.
Hamilton has been linked with a move to Red Bull (or somewhere) in 2012, Button is also said to be frustrated.
It is clear that standards have fallen for a team that grew up fighting for titles with great drivers and champions such as Frenchman Alain Prost, Brazilian Ayrton Senna, Finn Mika Hakkinen and Hamilton with his 2008 title.
Whitmarsh said of Hamilton's plight, when he had to conserve fuel in the closing laps and slipped away from a potential podium finish, "for a racing driver, it is hard to save fuel. It's counter-intuitive to be told to slow down. The car also becomes harder to drive as the tyres and brakes cool ".
'I'M NOT A CLONE'
Whitmarsh, admitting the strain, added: "I'm confident I will stay in my job. I answer to the board, not just to Ron (Dennis, chairman of the McLaren Group). They seem happy with the job I'm doing.
"For now, anyway...
“I’ve been here for 23 years and worked with Ron for 23 years. Some people thought I was a clone of Ron but I’m not. We have an interesting relationship - we have ups and downs - but it is strong at the moment.
"And I am hard on myself - even harder than you guys in the news media are on me - but doing the job I am doing is an addiction and success in F1 is cyclical. We’re judged by high standards at this team and that's something I welcome."
If it is not yet a crisis for McLaren, there was a sense of high tension during the Silverstone weekend as Hamilton, in dazzling form, made his way from 10th to fourth and fought off Brazilian Felipe Massa of Ferrari in wheel-banging style at the final corner.
STAY PUT, SAYS DAD
His head may be turned by rival teams - though Red Bull appears keener to keep Australian Mark Webber than bring Hamilton in as team mate to Vettel - but his father Anthony, also his former manager, believes he should, and will, stay at the team he joined as 12-year-old.
"My advice to Lewis would be to stay," he said. "At McLaren he has an opportunity to bring everybody together rather than pulling them apart."