McLaren’s Jenson Button feels Lewis Hamilton has performed well during 2011 season – Formula 1 news
McLaren driver Jenson Button has defended his teammate Lewis Hamilton’s performance during the 2011 season.
Button said it has been a fantastic season for him, but that does not mean that Hamilton has performed poorly or under achieved in any way. Button finished second in the Drivers’ Championship and performed very well during the season, not allowing Mark Webber
in a dominating Red Bull RB7 to displace him.
Hamilton on the other hand had a lot of issues during the season and was clearly out of sorts. The Brit himself labelled the 2011 season as one of his worst season since his debut. Hamilton endured criticism for his on track behaviour from other drivers
on the grid, and critics alike. His run-ins with the Ferrari driver Felipe Massa did not help his season any better.
Although Hamilton put his focus back on the game and finished the season on a high, winning the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Still 2011 season has been the first instance when a teammate has outscored Hamilton on the drivers’ championship standings.
Button though feels that he has raised the bar slightly and that is why Hamilton’s performance seems to be under par during the season.
“I felt more and more comfortable and confident in the team with finding the right direction for the car,” Button said at the Race of Champions.
He said, “I feel that I was driving better, and I obviously can't speak for Lewis. He had some pretty tough races but he also had some great races. In Abu Dhabi he was untouchable. He's still got the speed.”
“There are two guys in a team, and obviously this team has always been Lewis's team, understandably, he's a world champion, he's achieved so much for McLaren and everyone loves that, but this year I feel I had more involvement in the car than the previous
car,” he further added.
It would be interesting to see how well Button and Hamilton take this competition towards the 2012 season. McLaren is banking on their competitiveness to outshine the Red Bull and this friendly rivalry will definitely mean better results for the team.
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