Button pleased with Honda progress

Although the new car failed to get close to the fastest times during the test, Button is adamant the Japanese squad have made good progress since the previous outing.

The Briton admits, however, that there is still a lot of work to do before the car is competitive enough to fight near the front.

"We've made some progress this week. It's been a lot of electrical work, trying to get used to the new systems," Button told reporters after testing. "We made some good progress. Also mechanically I think we've made some good progress, so we are moving forwards.

"To me it's been the best test we've had so far this year. We are finding a good direction. There's still a lot of work we need to do to be competitive with the cars in front but we've sorted our reliability out. Our reliability is very good.

"Now it's just waiting for some new aerodynamic parts to make a bigger improvement."

Teammate Rubens Barrichello was also pleased with the team's progress this week, and he claims he is now feeling more confident with the car.

"We made some good steps with the driveability this week which have given me more confidence getting on the power," he said. "The car balance has improved with progress on the ride and suspension, and I'm feeling comfortable in the car and happier with my driving position.

"We have some hard work ahead of us but I am looking forward to the new updates which will specifically target the areas that we have been working on over the last couple of tests."