Jenson Button Q&A: McLaren will be back in the hunt soon 04 Aug 2010
With Red Bull more dominant than ever, and Ferrari taking a step forward, McLaren seem to have lost their way at recent rounds. The MP4-25 is certainly in the midst of a dip in form, and driver Jenson Button seems to have borne the brunt of its drop in pace in qualifying. Button hasn’t qualified higher than fourth all season and at the last round in Hungary failed to make it into the top-10 shootout. Speaking to his official website, Button reviews his Budapest race and the season so far…
Q: It looked like a very tough afternoon’s work for you around the Hungaroring…
Jenson Button: It was. It was a very long afternoon. But, once again, I put some more points on the board - and, just by looking at the championship tables, and how close they are, it’s clear that every point definitely helps. And if you don’t have a good Saturday, then I’ve learnt that you’ve got to keep plugging away, and that it can reap dividends for you. So, four points might not sound like much, but it means that, despite Sunday’s result, I’m still only 14 points behind the championship leader, which is about six points in old money. So it’s all to play for. Clearly, though, we have some work to do to close the gap to the front. I know how hard everyone is working back at the MTC to make that happen, and I’m confident that we’ll be back in the hunt sooner rather than later.
Q: The Hungarian Grand Prix was the 12th race of the 2010 season. We’ve only got two more races in Europe before heading off for the end-of-season flyaways. How prepared are you for the conclusion to this year’s world championship?
JB: Clearly, it’s fantastic to have scored two wins and three podiums and to still be in the thick of the fight for the world championship. That’s why I joined this team. Lewis (Hamilton) and I are still very much in the hunt, even if the last few races haven’t seemed to favour our car as much as they did earlier this year. But I know the strength of this team, and our determination and ambition to hit back. We know what we’ve got to do, and I’m confident that we’ll be more competitive in both Spa and Monza, with more to come once we head off for the flyaways. As we’ve seen before in the fight for the world title, consistency is essential, and I think we’ve probably been the most consistent team over these 12 races. Obviously, we’ll be looking at raising our game, but it’s still valuable that we’re able to maintain that consistency - to be able to score good points even when luck’s not on our side - so we can continue to fight for the title until the very end of the season.
Q: What are your plans for the summer break?
JB: I’m heading to Guernsey to finalise my preparation for next Sunday’s London Triathlon. I’m really looking forward to the event, and I’m still raising money for the Make A Wish Foundation. So there’s still time to sponsor me - you can go to www.justgiving.com/jb2010. It’s for a great cause, making dreams come true for very ill young children, and I’m proud to be playing my part to help them raise funds. My trainer Mikey will be joining me and some of my friends. It’s all for a good cause, so your donation would be extremely gratefully received. After the tri, I’ll definitely be looking to get away from it. But even though it’s a nice feeling to get away from Formula One for a while, you can guarantee that all the drivers will be desperate for the break to end because we’ll want to get back into the car. Still, the break is the perfect opportunity for all the mechanics and the engineers in the pit lane - they’ve been working pretty much non-stop since February, so this is a great chance for them to spend time with their families, and to forget about Formula One for a while.
