McLaren is years back to the top, says the boss

The dominant team has not won a race since 2012 and has not stepped on the podium since 2014.

The upheaval continued this week when the director Eric Boullier, a Frenchman who joined Lotus in 2014, has resigned. Technical Director Tim Goss was dismissed in April

McLaren ended a three-year partnership with Honda last season, but also underperformed with the same Renault engines that led Red Bull to three wins in nine races. "We have struggled for many years, even before Eric joined," Brown told reporters before the British Grand Prix, describing the situation as uncompetitive and unacceptable.

fight for titles. "I think we're years away, I do not know if it's two or ten, or somewhere in between," he says. "

" Probably more like an in-between, but I do not want to go in. I think we have to be very honest with ourselves and our fans, that everyone must recognize it. "

McLaren is sixth in the constructors standings and risks slipping seventh, with Force India – financially short and running on a fraction of the budget – just two points behind.

The team had said the # 39 last year, when Honda took a big part of the flak, that they had one of the best chbadis Brown acknowledged Thursday that this had not been the case.

"No, certainly not" , he said, adding that this year was not better: "We know we have less support this year."

McLaren driver Fernando Alonso told reporters separately that He trusted Brown 100 percent, although he also had the same faith in Boul

The double Spanish world champion denied having appealed to McLaren, his former race engineer Andrea Stella promoted performance director and the Brazilian Gil de Ferran, winner of Indy 5 00 with whom Alonso worked in Indianapolis last year. As a sports director.

"I'm just driving cars," said Alonso. "With Zak, of course, we have a very close relationship even though we met a short time … He is a runner, he understands the commitment and the racing spirit and I think that he is the best. he will be a good leader for the future at McLaren. " 19659002] (Reportage by Alan Baldwin, edited by David Stamp)