McLaren admit they have to switch focus to 2014 after failing to make Q3 at Silverstone

Not that they'd ever come out and say it explicitly but the tacit admission from McLaren on Saturday evening was, 'We won't win in 2013'.

McLaren's hope was that their new car design - seen as a radical departure from that of its predecessor - would enable them to make bigger performance steps than their rivals. Instead, they made a slow start and it's clear that McLaren are still treading water as a competitive proposition. Button qualified 11th and Perez 14th for Sunday's British GP, the eighth of 19 races. "Over the years, we have won races every year we've competed," Button said. "This year, it's going to be a lot more difficult because of where we've started the season. "We want to win grands prix because when you do, it's a very special feeling. That day, when you cross the finish line, you share that with the whole team that's been involved in the win. So it's a very emotional moment. "But our main aim is to win the World Championship. That's something we cannot do this year - not many teams can - so I think it's a good idea that we're concentrating a little bit more on next year. "We're still putting stuff on the car that's improving the car, because we think that will help us next year as well." Perez added: "Success is not winning a couple of races, it's fighting for the Championship. I'm very sure we will be back there." Whitmarsh also said that McLaren are no longer looking at developments, such as exhaust systems, that won't give any performance advantage in 2014. "I think we've got to go back, try and keep it as simple as we can, improve it, develop it, learn from it; we're only going to apply ourselves in developments which give us learning lessons and help for next year," he added.