McLaren Racing Director Eric Boullier has defended the team, and his own position, in the wake of rumoured staff unrest.
A report in the Daily Mail in the wake of the Canadian Grand Prix suggested that some staff members had grown tired with the current situation, seeking ex-boss Martin Whitmarsh out for guidance.
A follow-up report on Thursday in the same publication explained that staff had received Cadbury’s 'Freddo' chocolate bars as bonuses, causing further angst.
Boullier denied that his position was under threat and defended McLaren amid the reports.
“We need to discuss, we need to see internally what is going on, why these individuals are unhappy,” said Boullier.
“We have obviously 800 people. We have a lot of support from the work force and the engineering. I think it was just a matter of a couple of people were grumpy.
“In some ways it’s maybe good for us, because we have a lot of feedback and good feedback.
“I think there have been a couple of stories about some chocolate-gate in the media today which were a bit funny to read.
“It was actually good because we had tons of emails from people saying this is a joke. It’s maybe a couple of people grumpy, which in any organisation, you have some people who agree or disagree when there have been miscommunications.
“I don’t know what the problems are of these people. I think we have invited them to come and see us to understand the problems, and we are talking through the backdoor.”
Boullier moved to defend his own record, pointing to his previous success with Lotus in Formula 1 and with junior teams, while stressing that McLaren needs time to rebuild.
“I’m at my 20th year now in racing,” he said. “I’ve won races and/or championships with every team I’ve managed before, including Formula 1. This is a record you cannot take away from me.
“So I think we are on a journey. We are not where we want to be. We are not happy with where we are.
“It’s a journey with a new Renault engine partner. We have a good team of people. We just need to make sure we are finding the issues with the car and then correct them.
“We know where the issues with the car are, and make sure that when you build a car and when you believe in a concept, you have to develop the concept and make sure you correct it for next year’s one.”
