McLaren unveil new challenger for Button's title bid as they start life without Hamilton
By SIMON CASS and PHIL DUNCAN
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Jenson Button and Sergio Perez have today unveiled McLaren's latest challenger which they hope will fire them to Formula One glory in 2013.
Button, who begins his fourth campaign with the British team, and new-boy Perez took the wraps off the MP4-28 at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking.
The launch of the new McLaren was the first without Lewis Hamilton since 2006 after the British star joined Mercedes on a three-year deal.
New model: McLaren unveil their new challenger
Flurry: A host of other Formula One launches are set to follow
Higher hopes: Team principal Martin Whitmarsh said that they haven't won enough championships
Best of British: Jenson Button's helmet features the flag of Great Britain
History: McLaren celebrated their 50th anniversary by showing off some of their previous models whilst unveiling their new car and helmets
Hamilton will take the wraps off his challenger on Monday ahead of next week's first pre-season test in Jerez.
Today's unveiling in Woking sparks a flurry of Formula One launches with Ferrari and Force India to unveil their challengers on Friday before reigning world champions Red Bull lift the lid on their 2013 car from their Milton Keynes base on Sunday.
McLaren celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, and they marked the occasion by parading a number of their historic models before today's launch.
Button arrived in a prototype of the P1 super car with Perez driving a 12c Spider.
Different style: 'under the skin it is completely different,' said Button of the MP4-28
Sparking a flurry: Ferrari and Force India are set to release their own models this week
Missing faces: It was the first launch without Lewis Hamilton since 2006
'It may look similar to last year's car but under the skin it is completely different,' Button said of the MP4-28 which bore it's now typical silver livery.
'It has been an exciting few weeks in terms of building the car and finally seeing it as one last night.
Dreaming big: Sergio Perez says he wants to win the championship
'You go into this season aiming to win the world championship and that's what we are aiming to do. We are really excited.'
Perez added: 'It is hard to believe I am part of this great family and I am looking forward to big targets that we have this year.
'It is a great moment for all of us. It is amazing to see my name on it. As Jenson said the cars may look similar but it is a big project and the people here have worked day and night for it.
'I want to win the championship. That is my target. It is a very big target, but I want to work well with Jenson. We can work together.'
Button, who turned 33 this month, admitted he is relishing the prospect of getting behind the wheel of his new machine.
‘Most of the winter I have been so excited about 2013, I have felt like a 20-year-old again,’ said Button.
‘I feel the direction the car has gone in is good for my style. McLaren really listen and I would like to think I have had some involvement in the direction of the car.’
Button is hopeful that redesigned Pirelli tyres can help him with the lack of pace he suffered from on occasion last season.
He added: ‘We had some very good races and some pretty damn bad ones last year. The feeling from the tyres will be very different in 2013, hopefully we shall see lots more pit stops which we all enjoy.
‘Qualifying at times last year was not good at all, I still go back to the issue I have in my career of getting tyres working. But I feel we have learnt a lot from last season and we have made steps forward in that direction. We start the season with a clean slate hopefully fighting for pole and wins at every race.’
Reflecting on McLaren’s failure to win a constructors’ championship since 1998 and the costly reliability problems of last year, team principal Martin Whitmarsh said: ‘Recently we haven’t won nearly enough championships.
'Last year we started and ended with the fastest car and it was always competitive so we can’t be satisfied with an outcome where we are not securing the championship.
‘This car is already quicker than the car that finished the end of last year. All of our competitors are off the radar screen and it always possible there has been a eureka moment somewhere else but I think it is less likely.
Staying put: Whitmarsh claims that technical director Paddy Lowe will remain with the team for the next year
Looking ahead: Button says the team are excited for the coming season
Changing times: McLaren made their debut in the 1966 Monaco Grand Prix with the M2B, but retired with an oil leak
‘There are quite a lot of changes to the car but it also an evolution. We have examined our processes trying to ensure we have reliability. If you don’t score points you quickly fall behind. Ferrari and Fernando Alonso maximised the points out of the product they had last year and we didn’t.'
Addressing the speculation that the man chiefly responsible for McLaren’s 2013 challenger, technical director Paddy Lowe, could follow Lewis Hamilton to Mercedes, Whitmarsh added: ‘One certainty is that Paddy will be part of the team next year, it is less certain beyond that.’
Explaining why Lowe was missing from the launch, Whitmarsh said: ‘There is a lot of media interest and it is good that Paddy concentrates on his doing his job. At his own election he felt it was not appropriate to be here.’
Insisting that Hamilton’s time at McLaren has already been consigned to the history books, Whitmarsh said: ‘The last few weeks have been busy and exciting. Lewis was great asset to this team and there are some very happy memories. But I don’t think too many people at the team have spent much time mulling over the memories. You look forward and you get excited.’
Simon Cass's Verdict
If prizes were handed out for the prettiest looking car then McLaren would be title contenders every single season. The 2013 MP4-28 is certainly a looker and bears a striking resemblance to its predecessor.
The relatively subtle changes in regulations from last season are largely responsible for such similarities but McLaren are adamant their new machine is already quicker than the car it replaces and is filled with a raft of changes below the skin.
While Lotus, the only other team to unveil so far, have stuck with the ugly ‘platypus nose’ aerodynamic concept, McLaren, just as last year, have shunned the plastic surgery disaster trend in favour of sleek lines.
Many felt that was a mistake last season, leaving them less scope to develop aerodynamically across the campaign. Indeed, Ferrari and Force India, who launch tomorrow, along with Red Bull, who break cover on Sunday, are all expected to continue to put aerodynamic effectiveness ahead of beauty with their new machines.
But there is little denying that McLaren were quickest out of the box in 2012 and finished the campaign with the fastest car. If they can conquer the reliability issues which dogged them last year and have finally consigned costly pit stop blunders to history then there is no reason why Jenson Button and Sergio Perez cannot be serious title contenders come the end of the season.
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