Webber hints Alonso could be about to quit McLaren

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Mark Webber believes the situation at McLaren is now so bad that Fernando Alonso could decide to quit mid-season.

Alonso ended up retiring from the Australian Grand Prix with a suspension problem. His rookie team mate Stoffel Vandoorne lasted the full race distance - and even managed quicker lap times than Alonso.

Webber feels that with little prospect of any improvement at the team, Alonso might call time on McLaren after three years.

"Alonso may not stay with the team," the Australian told the Belgian news agency Sporza. "Maybe Stoffel will have a new teammate soon.

"I can see it happening, that Alonso won't complete the season. He is very frustrated

"Fernando is not here for sixth or seventh places," the former Formula 1 driver added. "He's not interested in points. He wants to fight for the podium."

No improvement at 'last place' McLaren, says Alonso

Whether Alonso would quit Formula 1 altogether or seek another seat with a top team is unclear.

The two-time world champion was one of the names linked to replace Nico Rosberg at Mercedes. Valtteri Bottas signed a one-year contract with the team in January, leading to suggestions he could be replaced by Alonso or Sebastian Vettel in 2018.

Alonso's future may be in doubt, but Webber remains enthusiastic about the potential of Vandoorne.

"He's a good guy with a brilliant career ahead of him." Webber said. "We need talent like that in Formula 1."

Webber felt that the Belgian driver could afford to be more patient about the troubles at McLaren this early in his career.

"In your first season, you're learning about formula 1.He gets to do it out of the spotlight because everyone is looking at his team and at Honda.

"His car and his team are not competitive, but Stoffel will get there. He can afford a moment like this."

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.