McLaren's Boullier expecting a race win in 2018

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McLaren racing director Eric Boullier is hoping the team's partnership with Renault will yield at least one race win next season.

The Woking-based outfit begins a new chapter in its existence after reaching the epilogue of its painful story with Honda.

While Boullier is determined to keep everyone's expectations in check, including McLaren fans, he believes however that the team's new partnership with Renault will prove successful in its maiden season.

"For 2018, our goal is to fight for third place in the constructors' championship," the Frenchman told Spanish sports daily Marca.

"But I hope we can do more than this and get a win after so many years.

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"I will not start to create false expectations or put hope in our fans that we cannot fulfil, but I believe that we will at least win a race (next year)," Boullier added.

Boullier's positive outlook is supported by McLaren's proficiency in building good F1 cars.

"It’s a bit early. There’s still some regulation changes for next year with the introduction of Halo and this kind of stuff, and we’re just in September.

"Even if we started working early on next year’s car, we need to wait a little bit more. We also need to wait for testing and obviously Australia to understand where the other teams are in terms of performance.

"We have always been in the top three, but we were far from that position in the last three years," he said.

"So we are going with Renault to have a better engine and get back to those top positions."

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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.