Button: BAR Struggling in the Dry

Jenson Button is confident his BAR team will be competitive in the wet, but the Briton fears to struggle if tomorrow's final qualifying takes place on a dry track.

"In wet conditions, we seem to be relatively quick. In the dry, we seem to be struggling a lot," said Button after setting the tenth quickest time in opening qualifying, a session that started out dry but was later hit by a heavy rain.

"We didn't test a lot, and we don't know quite what tyres to use," added the Briton, whose team use Bridgestone tyres.

Button's teammate Jacques Villeneuve, in what could be his final Formula One race in America unless he secures a drive for next season, wound up 16th fastest after completing his flying lap on a very wet circuit.

"This is the second time this year that it's rained hard on our lap. There's nothing you can do. If it just rains on our lap, I'm not very happy," said Villeneuve. "There's no way you can go as fast as on a dry track. When it starts raining hard, it's frustrating.

"If it does the opposite tomorrow (than today), it'd be very nice."