McClaren will improve says Whitmarsh

Martin Whitmarsh has warned McLaren's rivals to expect a backlash after claiming his team has yet to hit the heights this season.

The first three grands prix of the new Formula One campaign have been a rollercoaster ride for McLaren, with the undoubted high being Jenson Button's victory in Australia.

After his opening third place in Bahrain, team-mate Lewis Hamilton then produced storming drives in Melbourne and Malaysia, but could only finish sixth on each occasion.

Being stopped by police for doing 'burn-outs' in his hired Mercedes hardly helped Hamilton's cause Down Under, and an error of judgment in a rain-hit qualifying proved McLaren's undoing at Sepang.

Although Button and Hamilton are just four and eight points adrift respectively of early championship leader Felipe Massa, and McLaren 10 points behind Ferrari in the constructors' title race, Whitmarsh knows it could have been so much better.

"By our own very high standards, we've not fully met our very high expectations in the first three races," said Whitmarsh.

"That is despite having what we feel is the necessary race pace to compete at the front, and despite having won the Australian Grand Prix.

"That might sound overly self-critical given we are second in the constructors' championship, and Jenson and Lewis are both close to the top of the drivers' championship.

"But that's merely a reflection of the fact we at McLaren aim to excel at all times.

"So I regard that objective as a positive: it's our desire to improve and eliminate mistakes from the operation that will make us stronger championship contenders.

"There's no denying our successes - Jenson's integration into the team, his win in Melbourne, and some of the greatest drives of Lewis' career - have given us a great early-season boost.

"Now we are looking to establish ourselves as consistent challengers at the front, and to pick up the maximum available points on a regular basis."

Whether such determination will yield a one-two finish in the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai on Sunday remains to be seen.

But Whitmarsh is in no doubt title challengers Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes should beware McLaren's desire to raise their game.

"One of the greatest qualities of this team is its considerable strength in depth," added Whitmarsh.

"After establishing a strong and solid start to the season, we're confident we'll become an even more formidable contender as we head into China and then the start of the European season."

For reigning champion Button, it is all a question of balance, most notably with regard to his car after struggling in Malaysia.

It is why the 30-year-old returned to McLaren's Woking base after the race in an effort to correct an area he knows has to improve.

"Shanghai is a good drivers' circuit, while also being a place that benefits from a well-balanced car," said Button.

"I think I've made some real progress in that area as I wasn't completely happy in Malaysia.

"So I spent a day back at the McLaren Technology Centre looking at how we could have done things differently in Sepang, while also looking ahead to Shanghai.

"Along with my engineers, I think we've developed an even better understanding of the car.

"We know how to fine-tune it's balance and how to develop it over a race weekend.

"Of course, it's a continuous process, but the overall feeling is that we're moving forwards, which again, is always a positive."