Monaco Grand Prix: McLaren hope Monaco points

Monaco

In the heyday of their previous association with Honda, the McLaren team remained undefeated at the Monaco Grand Prix from 1988 to 1992.

 This Sunday, any finish in the top ten will be a cause for celebration.

The struggling McLaren-Honda outfit of 2015 vintage may be equipped with one of the most advanced racing packages ever seen in Formula One and have two world champion drivers. But it has yet to score a point.

The team is enduring its worst start since it made its debut in 1966, with team founder Bruce McLaren driving, at that season’s Monaco race.

For all involved, and all who have followed their fortunes, there is a harsh irony in witnessing this scrap for progress by the team with Monaco’s finest record.

McLaren has won a total of 15 Monaco Grands Prix to stand clear of the second-best team, Ferrari on nine, by six victories.

For McLaren boss Ron Dennis it is a source of pride, but also a reminder of the standards that they seek to recover.

"They all blend together," he once said with a smile. "But 1988 to 1993 was a pretty impressive streak and even that was preceded by 1984-1986 So with the exception of one year, 1987, we won every Monaco GP for nearly 10 years.

"That transcended driver changes, regulatory changes, everything So that made it even better. It requires precision driving and every one of those drivers excelled in precision."

The two dominant drivers in that period were four-time champion Alain Prost and three-time champion Ayrton Senna, great rivals whose brilliance defined their era.

But McLaren are without a win in Monaco since 2008 when two-time champion Lewis Hamilton triumphed on the way to his first world title. Alongside that, it should be noted that Ferrari has not won in Monte Carlo since 2001.