First McLaren points nothing to write home about - Boullier

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McLaren race director Eric Boullier was happy to see the team bag its first points but believes the feat is nothing to get excited about.

Fernando Alonso finished ninth in Sunday's Azerbaijan Grand Prix, completing his race without Honda's usual bag of mechanical woes.

The Woking-based outfit could have even made it a double-points scoring treat if Stoffel Vandoorne had a flat-spotted tyre towards the end not prompted a late pit stop which left the Belgian 12th.

First points for Alonso and McLaren in race 'we should have won'

"The two world championship points we scored this evening are a validation of all we’ve worked towards in Baku this week.

"Since practice started, I’ve said that we’d need to take advantage of every opportunity that came our way in the race, and we did just that today."

Boullier wasn't all smiles after the race however, aware that a ninth place finish was still not anywhere close to McLaren's ambitions.

"I’m not smiling, I’m not excited because it’s not the reason why I’m racing, and especially not racing with McLaren. But mathematically it’s good for the team, some result," Boullier told Motorsport.com.

Beyond his team's minor achievement, the Frenchman admitted to have been entertained by a race which he believes will benefit the sport.

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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.