Jenson Button says he is happy to have qualified in ninth for his return to Formula One at the Monaco Grand Prix despite being relegated to the back of the grid.
The McLaren driver, who is racing to allow Fernando Alonso to compete in the Indianapolis 500 this weekend, says that he enjoyed the experience of taking part in a Formula One qualifying session once again.
“I’m happy,” says Button. “My one and only race this year and I qualify ninth – and start 20th!
“Getting back into a qualifying session is awesome. Suddenly it’s a big learning curve. Practice is fine, you run through your programmes. I’m sure the race will be fine.”
Having had no direct experience with the new 2017 regulation cars until Thursday practice, Button says he did not know what to expect heading into qualifying.
“I said to the team, ‘I don’t know what’s going to happen with the car through qualifying. Are we going to get more grip at the front? Are we going to get less?’. I don’t know where the balance is going to go with these tyres and these cars. But it was all right. Q3 wasn’t very good, but Q1 and Q2 were.
“It was a lot of fun out there. It’s always that thing, isn’t it? You get to a certain point and then it’s the fine tuning. These tyres are completely different to last year’s tyres in terms of getting them working and what have you, what goes away and how long it lasts. It’s been quite tricky today, working on the last bit, the last couple of percent.”
With cars lapping Monaco quicker than they ever have before, Button says he enjoyed the feeling of extra grip the new downforce levels provide.
“I don’t think I tapped a barrier in qualifying… yes I did. I did tap a barrier in qualifying,” says Button. “But you know it’s wider. You don’t think about it, but you know.
“High-speed is pretty awesome. That’s the thing, you get into a high speed corner and you can just turn and accelerate. Normally, you either get a big snap of oversteer or you understeer off the circuit. So it’s so weird when you finally get to the limit of these cars and you’ve been used to something for so long.”
Button will be relegated to the back of the grid after a 15-place power unit component grid penalty, with the 2009 world champion not expecting to make much progress back through the field tomorrow.
“I’m happy with today. Tomorrow… I might as well not turn up tomorrow! But you never know, starting 20th. But it’s great to be a part of the team again and see that there are improvements.
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
27th May 2017, 18:31
I really like Jenson, but if coverage for the race is anything like qualy in terms of hype from the commentators, I just hope that he retires in the first lap so they can just stop rambling about it.
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
27th May 2017, 22:52
I don’t like JB but I’m he has a good race. C4’s coverage has been so annoying, Edwards has something against youngsters he always finds a way to comment on “maturity” and on the other side Croft uses twitter and facebook and the “devil’s advocate” excuse to act like Jonathan Legard or James Allen, at times, completely fanatic stance over the microphone.
Since Spain I really do believe the McLaren chassis is perhaps good for a top 6. On the chassis I think both Ferrari and McLaren are finding their pre 09 form as these cars lose some of the traits of those days.
bogaaaa (@nosehair)
28th May 2017, 5:06
Mind boggles where FA would of qualified in the top 6 maybe???
Rick (@)
27th May 2017, 19:30
I don’t get all this Jenson commotion, he’s just back for one race AND he will start from the back. Let’s not forget he was initially outqualified by Vandoorne in P6 during Q2, who also had a real chance of P6 in Q3. That would’ve handed him P9 on the starting grid due his penalty from Spain, but still.
Unicron (@unicron2002)
27th May 2017, 22:03
Well if you’d have told me before the weekend that Button would get through to Q3 and that Hamilton would be out in Q2 I’d have thought you were ‘on an E’. Well done JB, exceeded all expectations. Honda on the other hand…
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
27th May 2017, 22:54
@unicron2002 I wonder if Honda was a the level they were last year whether the McLaren’s could have put it on the 3rd row.
GechiChan (@gechichan)
27th May 2017, 23:12
i hope they dont tell Alonso that both McLarens were faster than Lewis, he might come back for the race.
petebaldwin (@)
28th May 2017, 0:54
@gechichan Yeah but then he’d realise that being fast in a McLaren is meaningless if the car can’t make the chequered flag (or the start of the race!)
bukester (@bukester)
28th May 2017, 2:49
The most overrated driver in F1 history. There is always some kind of excuse uttered. Always blame the car. Yes I do realize modern F1 is 90% car and 10% driver. UK media drool over this schlub.
bogaaaa (@nosehair)
28th May 2017, 5:12
Totally agree, not only overrated but next to Hill the softest WC in history
dex022 (@dex022)
28th May 2017, 7:35
Yeah really soft,never asking team orders,never pushing other drivers of the track,never park in middle of the Monaco Q to cause yellow flags,never crashing into others or team mates….one really SOFT WDC.
bogaaaa (@nosehair)
28th May 2017, 16:18
Ultra soft world champ
Keamo
28th May 2017, 6:40
Yawn. I can’t wait to see the back of him.
I hope he retires early on.
He’s always overstated his achievements and is a poor team player. . .Mr me me me.
When things go right, “it was all me”
When they don’t,” it was the car, the strategy, the weather” etc etc
And the only reason he has a championship is because he was the only one with a double diffuser . . Yes i said it.
Baron (@baron)
28th May 2017, 15:25
Well, what you say is fairly reasonable, but only if one assumes you didn’t actually read the article..