Judge McLaren after Spanish GP, says Dennis

By John O'Brien

SEPANG, Malaysia (Reuters) - McLaren boss Ron Dennis shrugged off a frustrating Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday and said the team's pace could not be fairly evaluated until after the fourth race of the season.

McLaren started the year on a high note, Lewis Hamilton winning the opening race in Melbourne with team mate Heikki Kovalainen in fifth, but the pair could not match the Ferraris at Sepang after being penalised five places in qualifying.

Hamilton's frustration was compounded when a pitstop problem left him fighting for fifth place on Sunday, while Kovalainen fared a little better in finishing third behind world champion Kimi Raikkonen and BMW Sauber's Robert Kubica.

"We don't really know what our pace is at the moment," Dennis told reporters.

"We won't really know how competitive our car is until after Barcelona (on April 27). As I have said before, Australia, Malaysia and Bahrain (the next race) are very different circuits and do not reflect the true pace of the car.

"Barcelona will be where it is all at."

Comparing his team's dominance in Melbourne with their struggles in Malaysia, Dennis highlighted the importance of running at the front of the field.

"Once you spend time in traffic, your front tyres get a bit more punishment and that just makes it difficult," he added.