F1: Button Encouraged By Fastest Time

Formula 1

F1: Button Encouraged By Fastest Time

Jenson Button posted the quickest overall lap on Friday in Australia...

Adam Cooper | http://www.speedtv.com | Posted March 16, 2012 Melbourne (AUS)

Jenson Button was encouraged with McLaren’s performance in Melbourne after topping the first session, while acknowledging that the true picture has yet to fully emerge.

Thanks to the short dry window in FP2, Button’s time actually stood as the quickest of the day. He was only 15th in the second session as he did not go for an out and out time at the end.

“This morning we were able to do some setup work,” said Button, “and this afternoon we were just getting a little idea of the car and how it reacts to putting wet tires on and inters, and at the end just doing a slightly longer run.

“There’s a lot of useful information, but obviously you’d like a lot more. It’s the same for all of us, but hopefully we’ll be able to find a better balance than everyone else.

“The car does feel different here to the last test; it’s a very different type of circuit, a different layout, and the average speed of the corners is much lower.

“The car for me is working well here, but there’s still some areas where we think we have to improve the car, as always on a Friday afternoon. And, yeah, for sure the weather hasn’t helped. We go into tomorrow quite happy, and a lot of discussions tonight to decide which direction we go in terms of strategy with the tires, and also about the setup of the car.”

Button conceded that despite the obvious limitations that everyone faced, it was good to be top.

“We all say it’s only P1, it’s only P2, but it is a nice way to start the season,” he said. “You’d rather be first than last. A positive day, I think.

“I’m reasonably happy with the car here actually; it feels nice. There are still areas to improve, but a relatively good Friday considering the limited running. We have a good understanding of the car, which is key, and lots to build on for tomorrow.”

Adam Cooper notched up his 27th season as a racing journalist in 2011. He has written about F1 for SPEED.com since 2005. Follow him on Twitter.