McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne says his preparations for his second season in Formula 1 have felt “natural”, compared to the build-up to his rookie year.
Vandoorne, a long-term member of McLaren’s young driver programme, stepped up to Formula 1 full-time last year, having made a one-off appearance in place of Fernando Alonso in Bahrain in 2016.
The Belgian’s preparations were accentuated by difficulties with Honda’s power unit, limiting McLaren’s track time, as he also grappled to adjust to Formula 1.
In comparison, Vandoorne felt he was able to hit the ground running as he gets set for his second year as a McLaren race driver.
“It’s definitely very different, the feeling this year compared to last year,” he explained.
“Obviously last year I was a rookie, I had to learn a lot of things, go through a lot of things, testing was kind of getting myself ready.
“[This year] I turned up and the moment I stepped into the car everything feels so natural, normal, straightaway, where you are, you have a good feeling about everything.
“I spend a lot of time at the factory as well with the aerodynamicists to try and develop the car in the way I want it, so far everything is very positive, very happy, and I can’t complain.”
McLaren has united with Renault in a bid to climb back up the Formula 1 pecking order in 2018, having placed a lowly ninth – ahead of only Sauber – in last year’s standings.
Vandoorne, though, was reluctant to predict McLaren’s place in the rankings, commenting: “It’s too early to tell, we’ll have to wait and see.
“The feeling is positive, I don’t want to make any predictions now, I think it’s better for us to keep working hard and deliver a strong package.
“Then it’s up to us to go racing and deliver some good results, we’ll have to wait and see.”
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