Rankings: Button up as Muller closes on Huff
Jenson Button broke back into the Castrol EDGE Rankings top eight courtesy of his perfectly judged victory in changeable weather conditions in Hungary
A run of bad luck - including consecutive retirements at Silverstone and the Nurburgring - had dropped Button to a two-year low of ninth in the Rankings, but Hungary proved the perfect tonic as Button once again showcased his ability to win in the trickiest of conditions in what was his 200th grand prix start.
The win not only reinvigorated Button's challenge in the 2011 championship, but moved him back to eighth ahead of NASCAR's Carl Edwards.
Button also has relatively meagre totals to defend in the next two races - an eighth from Hungary and a DNF in Spa-Francorchamps in 2010 - and could move back into top five contention if he can score highly as a result.
Elated with his success on the weekend, Button fired a portent to his rivals both in F1 and the Rankings, saying to his team: "Guys, perfect result going into the summer break. Let's come back and win them all."
Victory in tough and changeable conditions also provided welcome momentum for Yvan Muller as World Touring Cars visited Oschersleben on the weekend.
Muller took his third consecutive victory in race one and finished ahead of championship leader Rob Huff in race two to close to within six points of the Briton in the 2011 championship.
Muller also closed on Huff in the Rankings, gaining four places to move into 51st - while Huff lost ground and now lies 49th.
Winning was not quite as fruitful for Sebastien Loeb, who became the first non-Scandinavian to win Rally Finland twice with a masterful drive from the front on the final day.
Loeb however remains fourth in the Rankings, after Fernando Alonso (3) secured a podium in Hungary to do just enough to maintain his top three berth.
The big winner from Rally Finland was Ford's Mikko Hirvonen, who finished fourth on the road to gain eight places in the Rankings and break into the top 20 for the first time since 2010.
To see the full Castrol EDGE Rankings and the latest positions in the Castrol EDGE Race for 2011, please visit www.castroldriverrankings.com.
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