Button Glad to Score for Renault at Home

Briton Jenson Button was glad to give his Renault team a point at their home Grand Prix on Sunday at the Magny-Cours circuit.

"It's good to score another point for Renault, and particularly here in France," said Button after finishing in sixth position. "I was managing to keep up with the leaders at the start of the race, even though I had a little less fuel onboard. After my first stop, I was delayed by Heidfeld, who was much slower."

22-year old Button, who will leave the French squad at the end of the 2002 season to make way for Spaniard Fernando Alonso, was forced to make an unscheduled pitstop after he found his Michelin-shod R202 was oversteering too much. Button, however, sill managed to keep sixth place from Sauber's Nick Heidfeld.

"As for the extra stop, I had major oversteer on the third set of tyres, particularly into turn three," he added. "Given that we were a long way in front of the next car, we made sure of getting to the end of the race and changed tyres. I'm pleased to have scored more points, but there's still a gap to the top three teams."

Italian Jarno Trulli was unable to finish the race in the second of the Renaults, retiring with mechanical problems on laps 48.