McLaren will be the team to end Mercedes' current dominance of Formula One, according to CEO Ron Dennis.
McLaren has shown signs of progress with Honda this season but is still a long way off the class-leading Mercedes outfit. Ferrari has closed the gap this season but is still yet to win a race, with Mercedes the clear favourite to win a third straight championship.
Dennis is convinced McLaren, which effectively started the V6 turbo era one year late with Honda in 2015, will be the team to dethrone Mercedes.
"I honestly believe that the next world champions after Mercedes will be McLaren," Dennis told BBC Sport. "We'll get to that goal before other people. It is challenging but I have a firm belief in the technical competence of our people and a firm belief in Honda."
Significant regulations changes are being implemented for 2017, which will radically alter the look of the current cars, and Dennis believes that will bring McLaren into the mix at the front of the grid.
"The 2017 regulations level the playing field and it is enough time for us to catch up with Honda, so I think we'll have a good chance next year," Dennis said. "I think we can win races. I don't want to predict world championships but I do feel that dethroning Mercedes-Benz is going to be a challenge for everybody and I have reason to genuinely believe we'll get there before anybody else."
Dennis also praised the maturity of two-time world champion Fernando Alonso for his patience during the team's struggles since he joined from Ferrari at the start of last season.
"It is frustrating not to be able to put him in the best engine-car combination. I like his maturity at the moment; he knows what's possible. He is very complimentary of the car at the moment, but that's because it's good."