Analysis: Ditching Honda would leave McLaren nowhere to hide
If McLaren divorces Honda and switches to Renault, it would likely offer an immediate gain. But it also puts the British team under massive pressure because there will be no more excuses, says ex-F1 technical director Gary Anderson.
If this season marks the end of McLaren's engine partnership with Honda, then switching to Renault engines would leave the team no place to hide in 2018.
Chassis-wise, it would be compared directly to Red Bull, and the works Renault team; and if Fernando Alonso stays on alongside Stoffel Vandoorne, then McLaren would be, driver-wise, able to go up against Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo. That means no excuses - it's put up or shut up.
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