McLaren chairman Ron Dennis has admitted his team's season hasn't exactly met expectations despite scoring 62 points with four races remaining, compared to just 27 last year, but is confident they're heading in the right direction.
Dennis rated their current season "about a five" out of ten, but has high hopes for 2017 when major changes could allow McLaren and engine partner Honda to catch up to their rivals.
"We're just not good enough," he told Sky Sports. "We are here to win races and we're not winning races – but we are going in the right direction.
"Our new engine is running on the dyno now and that's several months earlier than our engine last year," added Dennis. "We are well advanced on the car and making really good steps."
Dennis also believes the planned changes will show which drivers are really the best, and McLaren are well placed with two-time champion Fernando Alonso, who is often considered the best all-round driver.
"As everyone will have been telling you, the cars will be four, maybe five to six seconds faster, and I think that's when the great drivers will start to excel."
