Jenson Button winner of Australian Grand Prix 2012

Australia GP 2012 on F1 Fans Forum 

Jenson Button opened the 2012 Formula 1 world championship with a commanding victory for McLaren in the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.

World champion Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) managed to get up to second from sixth on the grid, fending off pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton's McLaren and the second Red Bull of Mark Webber.

Fernando Alonso salvaged fifth place from Ferrari's difficult weekend, having proved much more competitive in the race.

Button claimed the lead at the start with a better getaway than his pole-sitting team-mate, and then quickly established a lead of three seconds, which stayed stable through the opening stint.

The two Mercedes occupied third and fourth initially, but Vettel overtook Nico Rosberg on the second lap, and Michael Schumacher's run in third lasted only until lap 10, when he retired with a gearbox problem. That elevated Vettel into third, but the champion was 12 seconds down on the McLarens by then and could make little impression.

Third-place qualifier Romain Grosjean (Lotus) dropped to sixth off the line, and was another early retirement when he clashed with Williams's Pastor Maldonado on lap two. Maldonado would lose ground with a trip through the Turn 6 gravel three laps later, but rejoined in ninth.

The gap between the McLarens grew to 10s at the first stops when Hamilton emerged behind Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus) and Sergio Perez (Sauber), who were running extremely long first stints.

That allowed a train of cars to develop for second, as Vettel gained and brought Alonso - who made a great start then jumped Rosberg in the first pitstops - with him, and Rosberg, Webber and the recovering Maldonado closed in too. Webber had initially fallen back with a poor start and a first corner clash with Force India's Nico Hulkenberg, who had to retire.

The lead order remained static until Vitaly Petrov's Caterham brought out a safety car by stopping on the pits straight with a steering problem in the middle of the final pitstop sequence.

The McLarens had both just stopped, whereas Vettel had not, and the Red Bull was able to get in for its tyre change under the safety car and get back out between Button and Hamilton.

Vettel was still no threat to Button, though, as the 2009 champion confidently pulled away from his successor at the restart and left the Red Bull to fend off Hamilton through the final stint.

Webber also benefited from pitting under the safety car to get in front of Alonso at the last stops. The Ferrari could not keep up with the Red Bull thereafter, and as Webber chased Vettel and Hamilton home, Alonso had to focus on successfully defending fifth from Maldonado - who made the task easier when he crashed heavily on the very last lap.

Behind, a huge battle between the Saubers of one-stopper Perez and Kamui Kobayashi, Rosberg's Mercedes - which fell back with tyre wear and early pitstops - and Raikkonen also ended in last-lap drama, as Kobayashi emerged with sixth ahead of Raikkonen and Perez, while Rosberg's Mercedes jammed in second gear and tumbled to 12th.

The final-lap chaos ahead allowed Toro Rosso's Daniel Ricciardo to pick up his first F1 points at home with ninth place, despite having lost ground in a first-corner clash with Bruno Senna (Williams), which also sent Jean-Eric Vergne off the road in the sister Toro Rosso. Paul di Resta completed the top 10 for Force India.

Felipe Massa briefly made it into the top 10 in the second Ferrari, but struggled with poor pace and high tyre wear, making three stops and falling back to 13th before retiring with damage following a collision with Senna.

PROVISIONAL RACE RESULTS

The Australian Grand Prix
Albert Park, Australia;
58 laps; 307.574km;
Weather: Sunny.

Classified:

Pos  Driver        Team                       Time
 1.  Button        McLaren-Mercedes           1h34:09.565
 2.  Vettel        Red Bull-Renault           +     2.100
 3.  Hamilton      McLaren-Mercedes           +     4.000
 4.  Webber        Red Bull-Renault           +     4.500
 5.  Alonso        Ferrari                    +    21.500
 6.  Kobayashi     Sauber-Ferrari             +    36.700
 7.  Raikkonen     Lotus-Renault              +    38.000
 8.  Perez         Sauber-Ferrari             +    39.400
 9.  Ricciardo     Toro Rosso-Ferrari         +    39.500
10.  Di Resta      Force India-Mercedes       +    39.700
11.  Vergne        Toro Rosso-Ferrari         +    39.800
12.  Rosberg       Mercedes                   +    57.600
13.  Maldonado     Williams-Renault           +     1 lap
14.  Glock         Marussia-Cosworth          +     1 lap
15.  Pic           Marussia-Cosworth          +    2 laps
16.  Senna         Williams-Renault           +    4 laps

Fastest lap: Button, 1:29.187

Not classified/retirements:

Driver        Team                         On lap
Massa         Ferrari                      47
Kovalainen    Caterham-Renault             42
Petrov        Caterham-Renault             37
Schumacher    Mercedes                     11
Grosjean      Lotus-Renault                2
Hulkenberg    Force India-Mercedes         1
Karthikeyan   HRT-Cosworth                 1
De la Rosa    HRT-Cosworth                 1


World Championship standings, round 1:                

Drivers:                    Constructors:             
 1.  Button        25        1.  McLaren-Mercedes           40
 2.  Vettel        18        2.  Red Bull-Renault           30
 3.  Hamilton      15        3.  Sauber-Ferrari             12
 4.  Webber        12        4.  Ferrari                    10
 5.  Alonso        10        5.  Lotus-Renault               6
 6.  Kobayashi      8        6.  Toro Rosso-Ferrari          2
 7.  Raikkonen      6        7.  Force India-Mercedes        1
 8.  Perez          4       
 9.  Ricciardo      2       
10.  Di Resta       1       
       
All timing unofficial

Autosport

© 2012 AUTOSPORT.COM

Button fastest in Australia GP 2012 Free Practice 1

Jenson Button led a McLaren one-two in the first free practice session of the 2012 Formula 1 season in Melbourne.

Damp conditions early on meant relatively little serious running until the final half an hour, with Button going quickest by 0.245 seconds over team-mate Lewis Hamilton.

Michael Schumacher was third for Mercedes, followed by Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) and home hero Mark Webber (Red Bull).

World champion Sebastian Vettel was a quiet 11th in the second Red Bull.

Toro Rosso's Jean-Eric Vergne had the honour of leading the field out for the first time in an official session in 2012, and the Frenchman and team-mate Daniel Ricciardo had the track largely to themselves at first - choosing to rack up laps while the circuit was still drying, whereas most waited in the pits until conditions improved.

It was Ricciardo who duly logged the season's first flying lap with a 1m47.448s after 20 minutes.

Nearly an hour passed before the Albert Park circuit was in good enough shape for slick tyres. Sauber's Kamui Kobayashi - who by that time was the fastest man on intermediates - led the move to dry tyres and blew his previous benchmark away by just over five seconds.

Webber then deposed Kobayashi, who grabbed the top spot back again, but only momentarily before Schumacher began a long stint in first place, which lasted until Button put in his session-topping 1m27.560s with nine minutes to go.

Hamilton then joined his team-mate at the front with a lap 0.245s slower in the closing moments, pushing Schumacher back to third.

Alonso escaped a massive slide at the final corner on his last lap to take fourth, but his Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa ended the morning in the gravel after putting a wheel on the grass under braking for Turn 9 with 13 minutes to go, sending the Brazilian spinning.

Nico Rosberg completed the top six for Mercedes, followed by Ricciardo, Pastor Maldonado's Williams, Kimi Raikkonen's Lotus and Kobayashi. Raikkonen only got out in the final few minutes after a long pause in the Lotus garage having his steering rack changed.

HRT endured what has become its traditional very tough start to an F1 season with neither car setting a flying lap. Pedro de la Rosa's machine was not ready in time to leave the pits during the session, while rising engine temperatures led to Narain Karthikeyan's car cutting out on the backstretch after 32 minutes.


Pos  Driver                Team                   Time               Laps
 1.  Jenson Button         McLaren-Mercedes       1m27.560s            11
 2.  Lewis Hamilton        McLaren-Mercedes       1m27.805s  + 0.245   14
 3.  Michael Schumacher    Mercedes               1m28.235s  + 0.675   17
 4.  Fernando Alonso       Ferrari                1m28.360s  + 0.800   21
 5.  Mark Webber           Red Bull-Renault       1m28.467s  + 0.907   21
 6.  Nico Rosberg          Mercedes               1m28.683s  + 1.123   22
 7.  Daniel Ricciardo      Toro Rosso-Ferrari     1m28.908s  + 1.348   23
 8.  Pastor Maldonado      Williams-Renault       1m29.415s  + 1.855   16
 9.  Kimi Raikkonen        Lotus-Renault          1m29.565s  + 2.005    8
10.  Kamui Kobayashi       Sauber-Ferrari         1m29.722s  + 2.162   26
11.  Sebastian Vettel      Red Bull-Renault       1m29.790s  + 2.230   21
12.  Nico Hulkenberg       Force India-Mercedes   1m29.865s  + 2.305   17
13.  Paul di Resta         Force India-Mercedes   1m29.881s  + 2.321   18
14.  Bruno Senna           Williams-Renault       1m29.953s  + 2.393   21
15.  Sergio Perez          Sauber-Ferrari         1m30.124s  + 2.564   22
16.  Romain Grosjean       Lotus-Renault          1m30.515s  + 2.955   16
17.  Heikki Kovalainen     Caterham-Renault       1m30.586s  + 3.026   16
18.  Felipe Massa          Ferrari                1m30.743s  + 3.183   11
19.  Jean-Eric Vergne      Toro Rosso-Ferrari     1m31.178s  + 3.618   17
20.  Vitaly Petrov         Caterham-Renault       1m31.983s  + 4.423    8
21.  Timo Glock            Marussia-Cosworth      1m34.730s  + 7.170    8
22.  Charles Pic           Marussia-Cosworth      1m40.256s  + 12.696  11
23.  Narain Karthikeyan    HRT-Cosworth           no time               3
24.  Pedro de la Rosa      HRT-Cosworth           no time               0

All Timing Unofficial

Autosport

© 2012 AUTOSPORT.COM

Button better than ever, says Coulthard

Former McLaren driver David Coulthard says Jenson Button is a better driver now than when he won the world title with Brawn GP back in 2009.

Button enjoyed a dominant start to the 2009 season, winning six of the first seven races before eventually closing out the title by 11 points from Sebastian Vettel.

But Coulthard thinks Button, who was second to Vettel in 2011, has grown even more as a driver since his move to McLaren.

"I think he's a better driver now than when he won his world title with Brawn," said Coulthard at the Autosport International Show. "When he made his big points gap, and then the rivals started to catch up, he made mistakes. It was like a tennis player missing an easy smash.

"Now you look at him and the way he's performed, growing in confidence all the time. It's got to the stage now where when the conditions are at their most difficult, he's the guy they look to. It's pretty impressive being in that position."

Coulthard added that Sebastian Vettel can now be counted as one of the all-time greats of the sport after securing back-to-back world titles last season.

"What it shows is the emergence of a real great within the sport by winning those back-to-back world championships.

"In the end it's actually quite amazing that Sebastian was so dominant, because his victories were not like in the Michael Schumacher era, when he would sometimes be winning by half a lap or something."

ESPNF1

Button has built strong team around him, says Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton says that team-mate Jenson Button was able to perform so well last season because of his relationship with his technical team.

Button finished second in last year's drivers' championship standings and outscored team-mate Hamilton by a comprehensive 43 points, surprising many experts who expected the 2008 champion to come out on top in the team battle.

But Button's wily race craft, combined with many uncharacteristic mistakes from Hamilton, saw the man from Frome come out on top.

"Jenson is very quick and he's gathered a strong team of technicians around him," said Hamilton in La Gazzetta dello Sport. "I'd like to be ahead of him all the time, and I'm not happy if the opposite happens."

Despite being beaten by a team-mate for the first time in his Formula One career, Hamilton says there is a healthy competitive relationship between the drivers.

"However, psychologically it's absolutely not a problem. Besides, he's an open and cheerful guy who I get along with. It would be nice to fight for the 2012 championship with him -- that's just up to McLaren."

ESPNF1

Jenson Button thinks 2012 F1 season will be his best chance yet to beat Red Bull

Jenson Button believes that next year will give him his best opportunity yet of adding to his 2009 Formula 1 world title.

The McLaren driver won three grands prix in 2011 and finished second in the world championship behind Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel.

And after out-scoring his team-mate Lewis Hamilton in seven of the last nine races of the year and signing a new deal during the same period, he now believes he is in a better position than ever before to challenge Red Bull.

"We haven't quite won the world championship in the last two years, but I have won quite a few races with this team and I feel that our time is coming," Button said.

"We are in a very good position. And it couldn't be better really so we are very excited about 2012."

Button said that he has achieved the aims he set when he signed for McLaren ahead of the 2010 season.

In that time he has outscored Hamilton 484 points to 467, taken five grand prix wins and achieved the highest position in the championship for a McLaren driver since Hamilton took the 2008 title.

He still believes that more improvement is needed, however, in order to knock Vettel off his perch at the top of the championship next year.

"We have spent two years together now. It has flown by, and it is quite scary that it has been two seasons already," Button added.

"My aim was to arrive at McLaren and win races, and be with a team that can always give me a chance of winning the world championship.

"I feel that we have really improved and I feel that with a tiny bit more improvement we can fight for more victories in 2012."

Although Button does not rate his season as on the same level as his title-winning campaign with Brawn, he does believe that the Japanese Grand Prix marked the strongest race of his career.

"Japan meant a lot to me, because I have got a lot of connections with Japan over the last eight years," he said.

"So to have won that grand prix on a circuit that I love; such a high speed circuit, a circuit that should suit Red Bull, in front of the Japanese fans after all they had been through this year, it was a very special victory."

Autosport

Button defends Hamilton's season

Jenson Button has defended Lewis Hamilton's season, saying that he improved throughout the year rather than Hamilton underperforming.

Hamilton endured a difficult campaign, finishing fifth in the championship standings with three retirements as he was beaten by a team-mate across a whole season for the first time in his Formula One career. Button, however, said that Hamilton had shown with his victory in Abu Dhabi that he was still able to produce his best performances, but that he himself had raised his own standard throughout the season.

"For me personally 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. "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."

Having signed a new three-year deal with McLaren towards the end of the season, Button said that he was happy that the team wanted to tie him down long-term having previously been happy to work off short-term contracts.

"It's something that McLaren wanted; I'm not blowing smoke up my arse, but a team wants continuity. For me, I wouldn't mind taking it year on year and every year renewing the contract. I think it's a nice position to be in, and it's exciting that way. But it's also good to have a long-term contract in terms of knowing that the team is going to support you and help you build as a driver and you need to work together to build a car around you."

Button also said he had been able to have more input in the development of the MP4-26 this year, and likewise has more heavily influenced the 2012 car.

"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, and that's really important to me. We've both had a lot of involvement in the car and we've really moved it forward."

ESPNF1

AUTOSPORT Awards British Competition Driver: Jenson Button

Jenson Button has won the 2011 British Competition Driver of the Year Award at the AUTOSPORT Awards in London.

Button finished runner-up in the Formula 1 World Championship with three wins for the McLaren team, becoming the first of Lewis Hamilton's team-mates to outscore him in a grand prix season.

He beat fellow F1 racer Paul di Resta, IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti, World Touring Car Championship runner-up Rob Huff, Porsche Carrera Cup Germany title-winner Nick Tandy and the late Dan Wheldon, the winner of this year's Indianapolis 500, to win the award.

Button, who previously won the accolade in 2003 and 2009, received his award from Tour de France green jersey winner and world road race champion cyclist Mark Cavendish.

"The 2010 season was a new experience for me with a new team, and I feel I really improved the team in 2011 as we worked well together," Button said.

"I've enjoyed myself, and after winning the title in 2009, I always said that would be the most important thing. It was a good year, but not perfect. One guy, Seb [Vettel] did an amazing job and we weren't able to beat him. The aim is to beat him next year."

Button's 2011 season did not start as well as he might have liked with just a single podium finish coming his way from the opening four races.

The year began to turn in his favour, however, with a sensational drive to victory at the wet Canadian Grand Prix, during which he came from last place after a front wing change, to overtake Vettel's Red Bull on the final lap.

He then won at the Hungaroring - again in the wet - and at a much drier Suzuka, and secured a total of 12 podium finishes during the year.

Autosport

Button 'happy' with achievements

Jenson Button said that he is "happy" with what he has achieved in 2011, saying it is been "a pretty strong year".

Button has won three races and emerged as the most consistent challenger to Sebastian Vettel in the second half of the season, with eight other podium finishes leaving him on the verge of securing second place in the drivers' championship. However, Button said that his finishing position in the standings was not as important of race wins, although acknowledged it would still be an achievement to be proud of.

"[Being runner-up] is not so important I suppose," Button said. "I think it's nice to know over a season you can finish in front of obviously some very good drivers but also some teams. To finish in front of a Red Bull would be great, considering that Sebastian's won the championship in a Red Bull. And Fernando has obviously been very strong in the Ferrari so, if I get the chance to beat them at the end of the season in terms of points, yeah, of course I'll be happy but as we all say, we'd rather come away from here with a victory, that means more to us than finishing second in the Championship - but it's still nice, I suppose, if you can come away with second.

"Looking back on 2011, yeah, I'm pretty happy with what I've achieved. We haven't been quite good enough to win the Championship but I think we've had a pretty strong year and hopefully we can build on what we've achieved this year, next year and really take the fight to Red Bull."

When asked if it had been satisfying for him to beat team-mate Lewis Hamilton over the season, Button said it was the individual race results like his victory in Japan which were more important to him.

"I think if we're fighting for the World Championship and one of us came out on top it would be a very special feeling but we're not in that position right now but for me, I'm happy with what I've achieved this year in terms of getting the best out of the car and getting some reasonably good performance. For me, Japan really stands out as being a great race, but also some other races that we haven't been able to win, so I take more comfort from just the results I've got out of…on a race weekend, and also how I've felt that I've done over a race weekend."

ESPNF1

Button not fearful of Brazil return

Jenson Button says he is not afraid of returning to Brazil after the car he was travelling in was the subject of an approach from armed assailants.

Button was leaving the Interlagos circuit following qualifying on Saturday evening along with his father, manager and trainer when their car was approached by a group armed with guns. Fortunately the driver was a policeman trained in avoidance techniques, and their reinforced vehicle was able to force its way through the heavy traffic to safety.

Ahead of his return to Sao Paulo Button was asked if he was afraid of going back this year, to which he replied: "No, not at all."

Button also told Sporting Life that he believes the drivers will all have police escorts to ensure their safety, but that other team members have to be more wary of their surroundings.

"Something was going to happen. It had happened so many times with the mechanics and engineers, and in the end it was going to happen to a driver. I don't think they wanted anything except for our bags out of the boot. But we have more security this year. I think every driver you see will have a police escort, and they should do. But you have to spare a thought for everyone else in Formula One because they don't have police escorts."

Despite last year's ordeal Button said that the race is still a special one.

"It's a tough one because it's such a good grand prix. I love racing at Sao Paulo. There is a special atmosphere, even when your team-mate is Brazilian (as in 2009 with Rubens Barrichello) and you are fighting for the world championship. I still love it there because they are so passionate, and there is so much history at that circuit. It's a pity things do happen there when we leave the circuit, but I think that just shows the divide in Brazil."

ESPNF1

Button rues KERS problems

Jenson Button said he was was happy to secure third place at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after a KERS problem robbed him of performance early in the race.

Button lost his KERS power boost on lap 12, dropping him off the pace of leaders Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso and into the clutches of Mark Webber and Felipe Massa behind. Button still managed to take a solid third place by the chequered flag, but admitted it had been a tough race.

"I think it was from lap 12 that I didn't have KERS basically," he said. "I had to fend off Webber and also Massa, which was quite interesting without KERS. In the next stint the team told me what I could do to get KERS back, and I eventually got KERS back, but it lasted for two laps at a time and I had to keep resetting it."

KERS works by harvesting energy from the car's driveshaft when the driver is off the accelerator and Button said his McLaren became unpredictable under braking without it.

"The problem is that it's not just when you accelerate, it's when you brake," he added. "When you have KERS you have a lot of engine braking from the KERS and when you don't have it, you don't have any braking performance. So every time I arrived at a corner I didn't know what I was going to get, engine braking or not, and it was pretty tricky. So coming home and finishing third I'm relatively happy."

ESPNF1

Lap 'not perfect' - Button

Jenson Button said that he had been struggling with the balance of his McLaren throughout practice for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix before qualifying third on the grid.

Button was quickest in FP1 on Friday, but from then on his McLaren team-mate Lewis Hamilton led the way in the practice sessions as Button seemed to be a few tenths off the pace. After pulling out a strong final lap to take third just 0.009s slower than Hamilton he said it wasn't a surprise to find that pace because the car had slowly been improving.

"I don't think a surprise, but we know the pace is in the car and it was finding the right balance," Button said. "I've not felt 100% comfortable this weekend in terms of the balance of the car, but we've improved it. We've tried a few different things and finally getting there through qualifying, but Q3 was very strange because there was less grip because it was a lot cooler the circuit, obviously with the break from Q2 to Q3."

Button also said that the lack of grip actually helped him in the end, but that it still wasn't the perfect set-up for the circuit and that he felt there was more performance in the car.

"So the car was acting differently, which in some ways was a good thing for me because I couldn't get enough front end in to the car. All weekend I've been struggling with a nervous rear. Finally when we get in to qualifying I've got massive amounts of understeer, so more in the direction that I like but in the tight section towards the end of the lap you need a reasonably pointy car end and I didn't have that. Not a bad lap but still, as Lewis said the car is working well round here and it's obviously not perfect. Seb did a good job and put it on pole, so we'll have to challenge from behind tomorrow."

ESPNF1

Button struggling with balance

Jenson Button says he has room for improvement ahead of qualifying for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after finishing second to McLaren team-mate Lewis Hamilton in Friday practice.

Button was 0.199s off Hamilton in the evening session, but admitted there were still balance issues with the car that he is hoping to solve in final practice.

"I'm still not entirely happy with the balance - although I'm confident we'll get to the bottom of it," he said. "Nonetheless, the pace of the car is good - Lewis was very quick today - and our long-run pace is very good."

Button said a good qualifying position will be crucial as he is not convinced the addition of DRS, KERS and Pirelli tyres will improve overtaking opportunities over last year.

"I was playing around with overtaking on my long run, but I still reckon it'll be difficult to overtake people in the DRS zones," he said. "So I think it's going to be a bit of a struggle to make moves stick in the race - which means it's going to be important to qualify up at the front. It's tricky around here, but we made some good progress here this afternoon and evening."

ESPNF1

Button wants wins over championship runner-up spot

Jenson Button says it would be "nice" to finish second in the drivers' championship this season, but that another race win "would mean so much more".

Since Sebastian Vettel confirmed back-to-back titles at the Japanese Grand Prix in early October attention has turned to the battle for second place in the championship. Button, Fernando Alonso and Mark Webber are separated by just 19 points, while Lewis Hamilton also has a mathematical chance of finishing second, and having been Vettel's closest challenger throughout the second half of the season Button said he would like to secure the runner-up spot.

"It's nice to know that if I do finish second I will have beaten a Red Bull (Webber), which is good," Button told the Press Association."Sebastian has done an unbelievable job this year, but he still has a team-mate, and to beat a guy in a Red Bull is great every time.

"And when Fernando is in tune with his car, it's great to beat him because he is super fast, and then there is also my team-mate who is unbelievably quick. So yeah, it would be nice to finish in front of them in the championship."

Button did admit, however, that he would prefer to win another grand prix, having finished second to Vettel in Italy, Singapore and India in recent races.

"As I've said before, if I could get another win then that would mean so much more to me this year. I've three already, and I'd like another in Abu Dhabi, Brazil, or maybe even both. Quite a few times this year, especially over the last few races, I have been the closest guy to Sebastian when he has won.

"We're certainly closer now than we were this time last year at the end of the season. We're much stronger at the moment, we're in a good place right now, which is a positive. We're still not quite as good as the Red Bulls, but they're not a big chunk ahead of us. It's very, very close. But when they get into the lead they don't make any mistakes, so it's tricky."

ESPNF1

Button expects Abu Dhabi to suit McLaren

Jenson Button says he expects the Yas Marina Circuit to suit McLaren's MP4-26 in next weekend's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Having finished second to world champion Sebastian Vettel in India, Button admitted that the car just didn't have the pace to challenge Red Bull in the race. In Abu Dhabi, however, Button is expecting to be even more competitive, and that he is "very optimistic" McLaren will be able to challenge for victory.

"Our car should suit this circuit so I'm very optimistic," Button said. "We saw at the last grand prix that even though we didn't have the ultimate speed to catch and pass Sebastian, we made him work hard for the win. Tactically, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes ran a first-class race: I got all the right calls from the pit wall and the pit crew did a fantastic job. The championship may not be at stake any more but we're still aiming to win races and put on a tremendous show."

With last year's season finale at Yas Marina being criticised for having little overtaking, Button expects the DRS to make the race more entertaining.

"It's usually been quite difficult to overtake here, especially last year, but I think that DRS will change all that. The back straight is one of the longest in Formula 1 so I expect to see a lot of action there. It would be great to see the new rules turn this circuit into a place where overtaking is more common and more exciting."

ESPNF1

Button's new deal for three years

McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh has let slip that Jenson Button's new contract with the team is for three years, as has been widely speculated.

When the new deal was announced the terms of the contract were not made public with McLaren referring to it only as "multi-year". However, during a BBC interview, Whitmarsh said that the current new contract, which will start in 2012, will continue for another three years to 2014.

Asked if Button's recent upturn in form was down to the security of the new deal, Whitmarsh said: "I'd like to claim that, but I think he's just such a cool and focused individual that I think he's doing a great job and I think he fits well with the team and the organisation.

"Hopefully he'll continue and we'll have another three exciting years with him."

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Consistency key to beating Red Bull - Button

Jenson Button believes McLaren can take the fight to Red Bull in 2012 if it can build on its recent form over the winter and come out in testing with a more consistent package.

McLaren secured second in the constructors' championship at the Indian Grand Prix, but the team has not been a match for Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel over the course of the season. Button is finishing his year on a high with two wins and four other podiums from the last seven races, but said McLaren would have to up its game again if it wants to compete for the championship next season.

"The consistency has not been there in terms of performance," Button said when asked for his views on 2012. "We've had some very good races this year, and we've won some races and come close to winning, but we haven't had the consistency throughout the year like Red Bull and Sebastian. One weekend we'll be fighting for a win or get a win and then two weeks later we won't be so competitive - that's something we need to look at and sort out for next season.

"We're ending this season in a better way than we ended last year and if we can carry on with that and make some progress I think we can start 2012 well and that's exactly what we need to do. Formula One is so competitive these days and we're not racing against amateurs, you've got be there from the word go and that's got to be our aim."

McLaren had a nightmare start to the year when the car flopped during pre-season testing, proving unreliable and slow. Team principal Martin Whitmarsh said the rest of the year had been an uphill struggle.

"We had a terrible winter and our first long run was the Australian Grand Prix," he said. "We did a bit of a recovery there but we plateaued out, we didn't make enough progress. We regrouped and made a bit more progress and along the way we had some great progress. We've had some great driving by both of our guys and we've won five races. We've been on the podium at every race bar one, but still not been quite quick enough.

"We seem to be quick enough to beat one Red Bull, but we haven't been quick enough to beat the Red Bull driven by Sebastian. I think we haven't been quite there and in this competitive arena we've got to make sure as a team we don't make mistakes and have a quick enough car - we haven't always had a quick enough car."

Earlier this season the team announced it would appoint ex-Williams technical director Sam Michael as sporting director next year, in order to iron out some of its operational errors. According to AutosportWilliams will now allow Michael to join McLaren for the remaining two races of the season in order to get started in his role and be in the best possible position at the start of 2012.

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Button - 'We all want to beat our team-mate'

As the dust settled on the Indian Grand Prix, the post-race attitude of McLaren's two world champions spoke volumes as to their current states of mind. After a brief chat for TV, Lewis Hamilton headed straight to the airport, reflecting on another forgettable weekend. Jenson Button, after his sixth podium in seven grands prix, laughed and joked with the media into the evening.

However, for the first time, Button admitted he was enjoying his dominance over his team-mate. When he joined McLaren at the start of 2010 it was widely believed he would wilt in the shadow of Hamilton and that he was recruited as a definite No.2 to the 2008 champion. But over the last two season Button has impressed everyone with his on and off track performances while Hamilton has seemingly lost his way.

As has happened most weeks, Button's discussions with the media inevitably turned to his team-mate. But when asked to analyse where things went wrong for Hamilton in India, Button fired back: "I don't give a f***."

It wasn't a angry response, just one which highlighted frustration that Hamilton's problems were overshadowing McLaren - and Button's - resurgence.

"If you have someone like Lewis, who is bloody quick, it means a lot when you can finish in front of him, yes," Button said. "He is also another world champion, so he is no slouch.

"We all want to beat our team-mate, whatever we say. That's the way it is. We have the same equipment. It is a real challenge to beat him, but that is the challenge I wanted when I came here. I wanted to find out where I really stand compared to Lewis. I have had better races than Lewis in the second half of the season, but he has had phenomenal races when I have not been able to touch him.

"Lewis will be strong next year. Sometimes you wish he wasn't that quick but it is competitive. He will definitely be there next year, no doubt, and we will have good fights and you will have two Brits fighting it out for the championship."

Martin Whitmarsh, the McLaren boss, admitted Hamilton's loss of form was not helped by his being repeatedly bettered by Button. "If you are honest, the first driver you want to beat is your team-mate," he said. "Lewis is the great exciting driver he is, but he will not like being beaten by anyone. Least of all by Jenson."

Button's performances have not gone unnoticed with one outsider, however, with Flavio Briatore - the team principal who fired Button from Renault - admitting his previous opinion of him was incorrect.

"I was quite wrong about the English driver," Briatore told La Politica nel Pallone. "He has been the real surprise this year. He worked for us and I would never have guessed he was so good."

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Button hails 'perfect job' in India

Jenson Button said he could not have done any better than second place after finishing behind Sebastian Vettel at the inaugural Indian Grand Prix.

Button got within three seconds of Vettel and was always pressing but admitted the Red Bull always had something in reserve.

"The last race I really struggled on the first lap and lost a lot of places so I wanted to redeem myself here," said Button. "I got a good start to get up to second by turn four and then it was just basically trying to hang on to Sebastian. His pace was very good, he didn't seem to make any mistakes and every time through the pit stops we gained a little bit, I don't know if it was the stop itself or after the stop but on tyres when I came out of the box I felt very good and very competitive and that was when I could really close the gap down.

"But as soon as Seb got into a rhythm I couldn't do anything about it really but all in all for the team I think we've done a perfect job today and we couldn't have done anything else."

Button tempered his delight at finishing second with the knowledge that it has been a difficult two weeks for motorsport. Afterwards, he dedicated the race to his junior former rival Dan Wheldon and MotoGP star Marco Simoncelli.

"Yesterday was a disaster for me in qualifying but I think we've put it right here so a good race but as Seb said it's a tough weekend for everyone in motorsport. The last two weekends have been very difficult and we've had two fatalities so it's been difficult obviously with Dan who I knew from a very early age, he was the guy who we always had to beat in the early formulas so I think we should dedicate this first Indian race to Dan and obviously Marco, another super talented youngster who was the most amazing guy to watch on a bike."

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Button bemoans 'disaster qualifying'

Jenson Button labelled his qualifying "a disaster" after qualifying fifth for the Indian Grand Prix.

Button will be promoted to fourth because of a three-place grid penalty for team-mate Lewis Hamilton, but he was 0.8s slower than pole sitter Sebastian Vettel after having to back off during part of his flying lap. Having also struggled to get through Q1 and used a set of soft tyres to do so, Button told the BBC that he wasn't happy with the balance of his car.

"No not at all," Button said. "This morning the car felt great, the pace was good and the car just felt good. And this afternoon I just couldn't find any grip ... on the hard tyre I couldn't find any grip and on the soft tyre the same. I didn't really get a clear lap either on either of my soft tyre runs; the traffic's been terrible out there. I think because the tyres aren't working on the first lap people are trying it and then backing out of it so there's cars everywhere."

"At the moment I've got to work out why I can't find a balance, and then hopefully we'll have a better race than qualifying because it was a disaster qualifying really. The car felt good on the high fuel yesterday so I'm hoping that we have that balance tomorrow."

Although benefiting from grid penalties tomorrow, Button admitted that he hoped he wouldn't receive one of his own having been following Felipe Massa when he crashed at the end of Q3, but still going on to set his quickest time.

"He was heading in to the gravel I think as I was coming up to it. I saw the tyre marks, I saw the smoke and then I saw the yellow flag, but I was actually in the yellow flag zone already so we'll see what happens. But I backed off, and I hope it's enough."

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Button laments McLaren's understeer

Jenson Button said a lack of front-end grip prevented him from taking the fight to Mark Webber and Lewis Hamilton after finishing fourth at the Korean Grand Prix.

A bad first lap dropped Button down the order, but he fought back to get on the tail of Webber's Red Bull towards the end, which was harassing Hamilton for second place. However, following the tight final sector, Button struggled to get within a second of Webber at the DRS activation point, which in turn meant he was not allowed to use his rear wing flap to gain a straight-line speed advantage into turn three - his only realistic chance of making a move stick.

"Towards the end of the stints the pace was OK, but I just couldn't get close enough in the last sector," Button told the BBC. "Whether I didn't have enough front-end in the car or what … but I put a lot of front-end in the car during the stops, and still I had so much understeer in the last sector. That meant I couldn't get close enough to them to use DRS and I think I used it once in the whole race."

He added: "It's not a great result but it's better than last year, I struggled here a lot last year. It's not one of my better circuits, but I didn't have any more really so fourth was it. I couldn't get close enough to use DRS, so that was it. But we'll go back and look at the data and look at the reasons for it."

Button said he was caught by surprise when Felipe Massa launched his Ferrari past him at turn three on the opening lap, which dropped him from third to sixth.

"The start itself was alright and then I thought Mark was behind me down into turn three, I don't know where Massa was … I braked where I felt it was correct, and it felt correct, but then I turned in and there was a car there," Button said. "I couldn't see him at all before I actually turned in, and then I was stuck on the outside and lost a lot of places. I don't think it would have changed my race, even if I didn't have a bad first lap because I just wasn't quick enough today."


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