Jenson Button says Mercedes GP would be biggest competitor in Canadian Grand Prix – Formula 1 news
McLaren driver Jenson Button has said that Mercedes GP would be their biggest competitor in the upcoming Canadian Grand Prix.
Button believes that the Petronas-sponsored team drivers will get an advantage with their straight-line speed on both the straights, where the Drag Reduction System has been allowed to be used.
He also mentioned that the long straights and lack of high-speed corners will possibly not allow the Red Bull racing team to achieve the race victory in Canada.
McLaren are very close to the ongoing season leader, however they are aiming that they will have to beat them in the Montreal race weekend.
Button discussed the seventh round of the season and added that the use of DRS twice in every lap of the race will make the grand prix very interesting for the viewers.
The British driver said, “The system we have for using it is very good, we seem to be able to use it in more places than other people. But, with the long straights here - I think they can get about 20 km/h with DRS, the Mercedes, and I think most other teams
are about 12 km/h.”
He is confident about McLaren’s race pace. Button went on to mention that his team’s race pace is somewhat the same as Red Bull, but he is sure they are still not quicker than them.
The 31-year-old driver continued that they are focusing on the qualifying round of the Canadian Grand Prix. He believes if the team makes progress during the qualifying round, then their chances of winning the race will increase.
Apart from that, he discussed his car and said that it is perfect for the Montreal race, especially after the upgrades.
Button added, “There are a lot of positives with the car, but also a lot of negatives - and when I was racing with Seb and Fernando [in Monaco] I could see there were weaknesses with our car. That is a good thing about having races like that; you can find
the areas where you are weak.”
McLaren are hoping for their second race victory in the Canadian race weekend. Let’s see how things shape up for them.
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