McLaren places full trust in Renault over engine upgrade claims

McLaren has faith in Renault over the French manufacturer's claims they have made gains over the winter in regards to their power unit.

McLaren jumped from Honda after a hugely disappointing reunion in 2015 and is now hoping that the Renault 2019 power unit is a significant upgrade from last year's version.

"We are up to speed with the comments they have made, and they have shared with us in detail the gains they have made, so that is quite encouraging," Brown told Autosport.

"We are new in the relationship, Renault are saying things differently this year than they did last year."

Although the team is aiming to get back to the top of F1, they have tempered expectations ahead of the 2019 season with sporting director for the team Gil de Ferran adding that they would have to be patient with their new partner.

"Last year was the first year for the team with Renault, and as you work together and understand how each party works, from the inside out, your relationship naturally improves.

"You get to know each other better, the conversations get easier and by consequence the technical collaboration tends to improve.

"The systems that you set in place, you need to run them for a while to understand the weaknesses and where to improve. I really see more of that going on than anything transformational."