McLaren is having “several talks” with Formula 1 about how the team’s cars have been covered in live television broadcasts of the grands prix in 2019.

After the works Honda debacle, the British team has now rebuilt its competitiveness with what is clearly the fourth fastest car on the grid.

But after the Spa race, Carlos Sainz complained that his car was on the television for just 15 seconds of the race.

“I cannot get into it, but I know that the team and the sponsors are not happy with the situation,” he said.

Sainz’s father, the rally legend Carlos Sainz, said after Suzuka that his son still “seems to be invisible”.

McLaren’s sponsorship manager Daniel McEwan has admitted he is concerned.

“We are working on it,” he told El Mundo Deportivo newspaper. “We are having several talks with Formula 1 about it.

“It is important for our drivers and our partners. We constantly work with Formula 1 to try to adjust and improve our visibility in the media.”