McLaren manager backs team to perform at Canadian Grand Prix

They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder but in an otherwise ugly season in Formula 1 the biased perspective of McLaren team manager Eric Boullier offers sage wisdom to those seeking a bet with value from this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix.

An uncompetitive field, problems with the cars, noise levels and the schoolboy spat between Mercedes teammates Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton have all threatened to undermine a season that is already shaping up to be largely forgettable.

But while the likes of McLaren remain very much a work in progress in terms of competing long-term, Boullier believes that a trip to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve suits his team perfectly.

The Formula One team owner has every reason to be bullish about McLaren’s chances too, having seen teammates Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen rack up some much needed points as part of a double top-10 finish at the Monaco Grand Prix.

Boosted by a series of recent upgrades to the car, the pair ended McLaren’s barren run of three straight races without scoring a single point.

“In Monaco we had a lot of mechanical upgrades on the car, and the track layout of Canada is high-speed with a lot of straight lines, but with no real high-speed corners, a lot of chicanes and low-speed corners, so it should suit our car and we should be in better shape than we were in Monaco,” Boullier said.

McLaren certainly boast a rich history of success at the Canadian Grand Prix with the constructor racking up 13 wins in the race – the joint highest total alongside Ferrari – with the team winning at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve for three years running from 2010 to 2012.

And in Jenson Button they have a driver with experience of winning at the track – having claimed the chequered flag back in 2011.

He could end up playing second fiddle to Lewis Hamilton though, with his British compatriot boasting a record of three victories at the circuit.

But with the car improving and Boullier optimistic about their chances, it could be worth backing McLaren to be there or thereabouts.

Magnussen and Button are 8/11 and 4/11 respectively to claim a top 10 finish in Canada, with the British star a tempting 2/1 for the top six.

Hamilton remains nailed on for a podium place at 1/5 but with Button a decent long shot at 16/1, it could pay big to listen Boullier and back McLaren.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.

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