Fry praises 'secret weapon' Button

After a difficult day on a track which started wet but dried out considerably, the Briton struggled with tyre deterioration and was at one stage running in 10th place.

But he got back up to seventh and, as a light sprinkling of rain made the going extremely slippery, avoided a crash on the final corner to finish just off the podium.

"Under these conditions Jenson turns into a secret weapon," Fry told reporters. "He is so adept at driving in these conditions ... the fact that he managed to pass a number of cars on the last couple of laps was no surprise.

"In these conditions it's really driver skill that counts and it's clear that there's four drivers at the moment, and three next year, who can bring home the bacon in these conditions.

"For me Jenson just reinforced his position as one of the elite group by being to perform like that in these conditions."

Button, who secured his maiden Formula One victory at a wet Hungarian Grand Prix in August, said he had thoroughly enjoyed the end of the race.

"The last three laps were awesome, fighting in the difficult conditions to get back up to fourth from seventh," said the 26-year-old, who has now won points in the last five races.

"It was good fun, and its good to come out of there unscathed because it was pretty crazy out there in the last few laps.

"In the slick tyres and in the wet, I love those conditions, it reminds me of my karting days."