Jenson Button convinced McLaren will bounce back
In a recent interview, McLaren’s Jenson Button played down fears that his team might not be able to match the pace of technical upgrades displayed by rivals Red Bull and Ferrari. The MP4-25’s disadvantage to the constantly improved F10 and RB6 has been thrown into sharper relief at recent runs where the McLaren team found themselves clearly outclassed by Ferrari and the flying Red Bull. Jenson Button in particular has been at the receiving end of the MP4-25’s plunge in form, as witnessed in a series of less than impressive qualifying runs. The Englishman’s best qualifying result this season has been a fourth place on the grid, and he failed to book a place in the top-10 shootout at the recent Hungarian Grand Prix.
Button described his Hungarian Grand Prix campaign as a tough race, but also chose to focus on the positives of his Hockenheim experience, saying he had managed to bring some useful points to the discussion table after the run. With the title race so tight, Button emphasized each and every detail was crucial to clinching the ultimate trophy. The Englishman said in the event of a poor qualifying run, the best strategy was to keep pushing hard during the race, for any number of points that could be gleaned were gold.
Button insisted although the four points he had gleaned from the Hungarian Grand Prix were not saying much, the haul ensured he was still very much in the title race at just 14 points adrift of championship leader Mark Webber. Therefore, the McLaren driver reasoned, nothing had been yet lost. Of course, there was important work to be done by the McLaren technical department to reduce the disadvantage to Ferrari and Red Bull, and Button said he was optimistic his side will be back to top form soon. The McLaren racer said it was poor grip that had led to his unimpressive Hungarian qualifying campaign, remarking that the car had produced good results in the practice session, but during the qualifying run he had not been able to find a balance.
Button said it was highly satisfying to know he had already clinched two victories and three podium positions and that he was still one of the hot favourites for the drivers’ title. The Englishman expressed his satisfaction at having pledged his loyalties to McLaren, a team, he said, knew exactly what the way forward was.
Button insisted his side was upbeat about its chances at the upcoming Spa and Monza events. He further elaborated that consistency was the key factor in winning the drivers’ championship, and it was trait McLaren had displayed better than any other team in the past twelve races.
As for his plans for the traditional Formula One summer break, Button said he looked forward to participating in the 2010 London triathlon event and will also busy himself working for the Make A Wish Foundation, a charity for critically ill children. The Englishman spoke at length about his commitment to the program, saying he felt honoured to be part of such a noble cause that helped realize the aspirations of young children who did not enjoy the benefits of good health. Button informed that his fitness trainer Mikey and a few friends will be accompanying him in the drive to collect funds for the charity.
However, as timely as the summer break was, the McLaren driver said he was sure most of his colleagues will be rooting for the hiatus to end so they can get back to the tracks. Yet, Button said, the break was an ideal time for Formula One mechanics and engineers – who had been incredibly busy since February – to take a well earned hiatus from their highly demanding Formula One schedule. Button’s team mate Lewis Hamilton, however, could not bring himself to be as excited about the vacation, reasoning that the inactivity had come at a time when the MP4-25 needed a major overhaul to have any realistic chance of keeping the championship hopes alive.
Tags: