McLaren needs to be patient with Honda - Brown

McLaren needs to be patient with Honda and help the power unit manufacturer recover from its current difficulties, according to the team's executive director Zak Brown.

Honda promised a step forward in performance this year with a new power unit concept, but has so far endured a torrid 2017 as a lack of both reliability and performance have seen a McLaren finish a race on just one occasion. Bahrain was particularly challenging, with an MGU-H problem striking on four occasions, but Brown admits McLaren needs to accept the situation and give Honda time to improve.

"We need to work with our partner, we need to help our partner," Brown told the Marshall Pruett Podcast. "Of course it's frustrating for us, for them, for Fernando [Alonso], for our fans, for our partners. Some things are quicker and easier fixes than others. Power units are not one of those, they are very sophisticated. The time it takes to develop and then ultimately validate is a long time in racing terms, when you're racing every week or every two weeks.

"So it is going to be a rough ride here this season. We're obviously working very hard to make each race better but we're starting from such a deficit that this year will not be one of our better years no matter how much we improve from where we are today."

However, Brown says the struggles McLaren and Honda are currently facing will make success all the sweeter once the team finally gets back to the front.

"It's frustrating but you know what? That's motor racing. This has obviously been going on for a few years so that compounds the issue. We expect and anticipate early issues in any developmental relationship, I think that's natural. I think we're all surprised that we've taken a step backwards this year and that certainly increases the frustration as we were moving forward last year. But it is what it is.

"It is frustrating for us because we live it, but we appreciate the fans frustration. We've got millions of supportive fans that understand – and then of course some people that don't understand. I don't expect them to understand, but I would ask for their patience not to expect dramatic changes race-by-race, but we'll get there. We talk internally and when we do, victory is going to feel and taste all that much better."