Button Encouraged by New Aero Package

Briton Jenson Button was encouraged by the performance of the revised bodywork of his BAR-Honda car, introduced for this weekend's British Grand Prix.

The Brackley-based squad are using a revised aerodynamic package and the latest evolution of the Honda engine for this Grand Prix. Button said he was pleased with the improvements but admitted he was expecting to be closer to the top after posting the ninth quickest time.

"The run wasn't too bad," admitted Button. "It started to drizzle with rain a little which has given the circuit more grip strangely, but there's a lot more grip than we had this morning. It wasn't a perfect lap; I don't think I got the best out of it but we have definitely made a step forward with the car from the last race.

"The new bodywork has made quite a big difference but we are a little further behind than we wanted to be, so we have just got to hope that we can make progress for tomorrow. We still have quite a bit of work to do on set-up."

Canadian Jacques Villeneuve finished down in 13th position after claiming his teammate had opted for the best tyre for the conditions.

"The car was good for the first half of the lap but by the last two corners the front tyres were gone," explained Villeneuve. "It didn't seem slippery out there but it was a little bit difficult as you get to turn one and don't know how much grip there is.

"Today was the day to try things on the car - Jenson took a different tyre and it looks like that choice is better, so I will go with that choice tomorrow. We have made improvements to the car for this race and we have certainly taken a step forward. We already know what we have to do tomorrow to improve the set-up."