Button aims for top six in race

The BAR driver has praised the continual developments the team and engine supplier Honda has made on the car, which Button reckons are "paying dividends."

"It just felt like a very clean lap in which everything came together," said Button. "A start like this gives you the confidence that the car is going to be stable for final qualifying and the race, so I'm very happy. We've had another small step up with the engine and aero here and these changes are gradually paying dividends. Things are looking good for the rest of the weekend so I'd like to think that top six is a possibility on Sunday."

Button's team-mate Jacques Villeneuve was less happy after qualifying down in 12th. "The car has been very hard to drive all day but it didn't feel like a particularly bad lap, so it's a little bit disappointing," he said.

"On long runs we were quite competitive but we just don't seem to have been able to make new tyres work for us today. Jenson's time showed that the car is quick but we have some work to do this evening to understand why we haven't been able to get the best out of it today."