Vandoorne under no pressure to deliver at McLaren

©McLaren

Fernando Alonso has stolen most of McLaren's headlines lately with his upcoming trip to the Indy 500 while team mate Stoffel Vandoorne bides his time.

More than the Spaniard, Vandoorne has been on the receiving end of his team's dismal reliability and performance which culminated with the Belgian being prevented from racing in Bahrain when his Honda power unit revealed a last-minute issue.

Vandoorne has drawn upon his sturdy Flemish character however to cope with a difficult opening to his first full season of F1 while McLaren remains totally behind its youngster.

"I would not say he is in a comfortable position, but he is in a position where he doesn't have to show at every race what he is worth," says McLaren's Eric Boullier.

"We believe in him, and we signed him for the long term. We don't want the situation to carry on too long, but there is no pressure to deliver race after race.

"But he is okay, he is very well supported by McLaren."

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Boullier therefore insists it would be unfair to judge Vandoorne on results alone.

"If you look session by session, he had a lot of issues with his car but he was never in a proper position to extract the best from his car," he said.

"But we watch the data lap-by-lap, so I can tell you yes a few times during the race, he had it all working on his car and he was driving properly and matching Fernando, which is good.

"But yes we need a complete weekend with no issues during the race."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.