With Barcelona marking the beginning of the European season, along with the return of the lavish team hospitality units - or branding centre as McLaren prefers - the Spanish race also marks the beginning of the upgrade war that will intensify throughout the summer as the title fights reach their respective crescendos.

Having failed to make the 'out of the box' impression his team had been hoping for, its fourth-place in the standings certain to be put under pressure by Renault and Force India in the coming weeks, Fernando Alonso admits that he hopes rivals updates don't prove too successful.

"In Barcelona there is a new aero package coming, but I think 95% of the paddock is bringing a new aero package to Barcelona," says the Spaniard.

"So, maybe the gap remains as it is, or we just recover a little bit, or we lose more ground," he admits. "Who knows? I think it is up to us to make that package work to expectations and hopefully some others, they don't deliver. That is our hope."

"There is a new direction maybe starting from Barcelona and you cannot expect, as Fernando said, to jump up everybody," added team boss Eric Boullier.

"Everybody is bringing parts, everybody is bringing a package, especially for the first European races," he added. "Monaco will be another upgrade, Canada will be another upgrade and Silverstone as well. It is every race."