McLaren CEO Martin Whitmarsh is confident that the team have done all they can to prevent a repeat of the wheel-gun failure that cost Lewis Hamilton a podium finish in Malaysia.
A wheel-nut locking system problem scuppered Lewis Hamilton's chances of a podium at Sepang last week with the incident delaying the Briton by ten seconds and demoting him to eleventh behind a slower but resilient Mark Webber – he eventually wound up fifth.
McLaren, who fly out to Bahrain for the third race of the 2008 season this week have spent the last week ensuring that the problem does not reoccur for either driver.
"As always behind the scenes there are lots of things you need to attend to. In particular the pitstops and the problem we experienced in Malaysia with Lewis' right front wheel," revealed Martin Whitmarsh discussing the Woking-based outfit's Bahrain preparations.
McLaren elected not to attend the pre-season test session at Bahrain this year unlike rivals Ferrari who set an ominously fast pace at the desert circuit back in February. However, Whitmarsh does not believe that this will hinder his drivers' chances next week.
"Of course we would have liked to test in Bahrain but we do have to prioritise where we spend our time," confessed the 49-year-old.
"Over the winter we have improved the aerodynamic efficiency of the car and cooling generally so it's not currently one of our vulnerable points," the McLaren CEO added pointing to the heat as a decisive factor in next week's grand prix.
"We have good data from running at the Bahrain track in previous years so we are confident it will not prove too much of a disadvantage."
Brakes are also set to take a battering at the demanding Bahrain International Circuit, notorious for its number of straights and heavy braking zones.
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