F1: Starting Second, Button Driven To Win

Formula 1

F1: Starting Second, Button Driven To Win

Jenson Button won't be satisfied with anything less than a win on Sunday at Interlagos...

Adam Cooper | http://www.speedtv.com | Posted November 24, 2012 Sao Paulo (BRA)

Jenson Button opened 2012 with a win and hopes to finish in similar fashion. (Photo: Getty Images)

Jenson Button earned his best ever Brazilian GP grid position by taking second place at Interlagos behind his McLaren teammate, Lewis Hamilton.

Button was happy enough with his performance, despite missing out on pole by the tiny margin of 0.055s.

“It was a pretty good lap,” said Button. “I'm not going to point at areas where you lose or gain time. It was a good time, but Lewis' was half a tenth quicker.

“I’m very happy to be on the front row, as the last couple of races have been a bit tricky in qualifying. So, yeah, good. As Lewis said, it's great to both be on the front row for his last Grand Prix for the team. The team's in great shape at the moment, and it's a pity things have got to change, but things do change.”

Button says he has only one goal on Sunday.

“We’re there to win the Grand Prix, as I think every driver is, unless it’s teammates fighting for the World Championship,” he said. “So, we both want to win the race tomorrow; that’s the aim for both of us. So we’ll see what we can do.

“The car seems to be working very well in the dry, our long-run pace is pretty good, but ... there’s a massive chance of rain tomorrow, and that just throws it up in the air for us. It’s quite exciting for two people (title contenders Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso). Their stress levels are going to be through the roof.

“But for us starting near the front, it’s hopefully going to be a very exciting race. We just have to hope that the rain level is OK for us to actually race. That’s always the worry here in Interlagos.”

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.