Jenson Button cautious about McLaren's chances of winning the Monaco Grand Prix

The 2012 McLaren has shown itself to excel in high-speed corners - something that is lacking in Monaco - which means Button and team-mate Lewis Hamilton will have to push extra hard if they want to triumph at Formula 1's blue riband event.

Looking ahead to the weekend, Button reckoned that there was still plenty to look forward to though.

"I remember last year having a fantastic car beneath me and feeling really confident that I could challenge for the win," he said. "As it happened, circumstances beyond our control worked to pull that opportunity away from us, but I go back to Monte-Carlo with a little bit of unfinished business.

"This year, we'll be running Pirelli's Supersoft compound for the first time - which should be interesting. And while our car isn't especially suited to the tighter confines of a track like Monaco, I'm optimistic of getting on top of the balance issues that have affected me for the past two races. It's going to be a fantastic weekend."

Hamilton is still chasing his first win of the season, but is equally aware that his consistency must be kept up if he wants to fight for the championship.

"It's important not to lose sight of the fact that, despite pushing for the win, consistency and scoring decent points is currently the most sensible way to tackle this world championship," he explained.

"I've scored points at every race, and I'm only eight points off the lead of the championship. That's a really encouraging statistic and it's reassuring to see my approach is paying off.

"Nevertheless, I'm coming off the back of two relatively disappointing results and there would be no better place for the cards to fall in my favour than at Monaco."