Jenson Button: Pace cost McLaren Formula 1 titles not glitches
Jenson Button is sure that McLaren's early-summer slump was more damaging to its 2012 Formula 1 title bid than reliability or pitstop problems
McLaren only finished third in the constructors' standings despite having the pacesetting car at several junctures this season, while drivers Lewis Hamilton and Button had to settle for fourth and fifth in a championship both had led at times.
Although the team had several well-publicised technical failures and pit delays, Button believes the spells when McLaren was too slow to fight for wins should not be underestimated.
"Sometimes you do get failures and you've got to rectify the issue," he said.
"But the most difficult part for us was before the summer break when we just didn't have the pace.
"The reason why we were not fighting for the title isn't just the reliability issues, the pace in that period of time wasn't good enough compared to our competitors."
He feels the mechanical glitches attracted more attention due to their timing.
"We have had reliability issues, but when you actually look at it, the problems have all been at weekends," Button said.
"We did 1400 kilometres at the young driver test and didn't have one issue at all, so we have been a little bit unlucky, I think."
From May to July, Button endured a string of races where he could manage no better than lower top-10 places, but he thinks the team ultimately benefited from his difficulties.
"We tried new things because I struggled to get tyre temperature more than most, and it didn't work, it just destroyed the tyres around Monaco and Canada time," he explained.
"Lewis had a good race in Canada and I had such a bad race, and it was good for the rest of the year in a way because we had the two extremes so we could look at the data, get in the simulator, change the balance around, and work out why I had so much degradation and he didn't.
"It was really useful to learn what you can and cannot do with the tyres, because it's different to what you'd usually think."
Previous article
Best features of 2012: F1's talent logjam
Next article
Red Bull crew's 'heroic spirit' key to 2012 Formula 1 title success
About this article
| Series | Formula 1 |
| Drivers | Jenson Button |
| Teams | McLaren |
| Author | Matt Beer |
The clues Hamilton’s F1 contract afterthought gives to his future
The Formula 1 world reacted with surprise when it learned Lewis Hamilton’s long-awaited new Mercedes deal guarantees his presence on the grid only until the end of 2021. Both parties claimed publicly they were happy with the arrangement but, asks MARK GALLAGHER, is there more to it than that?
How a harshly ejected Red Bull star has been hooked by racing again
Driver-turned-DJ Jaime Alguersuari lost his love for motorsport when he was booted out of Formula 1 just as he was starting to polish his rough edges. Having drifted from category to category then turned his back on racing altogether in 2015, he’s come full circle and is planning a return in karts for fun
Why Mercedes isn't confident it's really ahead of Red Bull at Imola
While Mercedes struck back against Red Bull by topping the times at Imola on Friday ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, the overall picture remains incredibly close. Despite having a possible edge this weekend, the reigning Formula 1 world champion squad is not taking anything for granted...
What Mercedes must do to keep its F1 title challenge on track
Mercedes may find itself leading the drivers' and constructors' standings after Lewis Hamilton's victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix, but it is well-aware that it came against the odds, with Red Bull clearly ahead on pace. Here's what the Brackley team must do to avoid its crown slipping
Why Tsunoda can become Japan’s greatest F1 talent
While Japan's fever for motor racing is well-documented, the country has yet to produce a Formula 1 superstar – but that could be about to change, says BEN EDWARDS
Why the demise of F1's hypocritical spending habit is cause for celebration
For too long, F1's richest teams have justified being able to spend as much as they want because that's the way they've always conducted their business. STUART CODLING says that's no reason not to kick a bad habit
The double whammy that is defining Vettel’s F1 fate
It's been a tough start to Sebastian Vettel's Aston Martin F1 career, with a lack of pre-season testing mileage followed by an incident-packed Bahrain GP. But two key underlying factors mean a turnaround is not guaranteed
The diva that stole a march on F1’s wide-bodied opposition
In 2017 new F1 technical regulations were supposed to add drama - and peg Mercedes back. STUART CODLING looks at the car which, while troubled, set the stage for the wide-bodied Formula 1 era
