McLaren: Experience Spoke for Button, Lack of Reliability for Alonso
The feelings were mixed at McLaren-Honda after the United States Grand Prix: Jenson Button, despite a disappointing pace in dry conditions, managed to score eight points with a 6th place finish. On the other hand, Fernando Alonso, let down by the new Honda engine, had to give up his 5th place.
Fernando Alonso experienced a tumultuous race: a victim of the opening incidents, the Spaniard nonetheless glimpsed the 5th place a few laps before the finish… before a problem with his Honda engine brought him back to reality. He finished outside the points, in 11th place.
Despite everything, Fernando Alonso claims to have delivered one of the best races of his career. Finding himself a minute behind the penultimate car on the second lap, and then racing to be as well placed as 5th with ten laps remaining was truly a feat. After such a comeback, it was a shame to encounter a mechanical problem in the last laps, which prevented us from staying in the fight.
The Spaniard benefited from the new Honda Power Unit. While it provides an additional twenty horsepower, its reliability unfortunately still needs work… On the contrary, Jenson Button, a bit slower without the Honda upgrade but more reliable than his teammate, delivered a race full of experience to cross the line in 7th place. He would finish 6th after the five-second penalty given to Carlos Sainz.
The 2009 world champion delivered his best performance of the season: « It was a strategic race, and we delivered a perfect race. The team should be very happy with what we have accomplished; we came back at the right time every time, but we still need to address our lack of performance » he confided after the race.
The Englishman suffered more on the dry than on the wet track: « In the early laps, I really took full advantage of the drying track conditions, and I felt capable of making a bit of a difference. (…) But once the track dried and everyone knew where to brake, it became much more difficult for us. We really couldn’t match the pace of the other cars. »
After the race, Eric Boullier, the Race Director, highlighted the work of Jenson Button: « As always, in these topsy-turvy races, Jenson skillfully managed the conditions, avoiding all the traps despite the tricky conditions and calmly making his way through the pack. »
Yasuhisa Arai, the head of Honda’s engine at McLaren, stated that the engine improvements were nonetheless satisfactory: « Fernando’s car was quite competitive during the majority of the race, thanks to both his talent and the new engine specification, which met our expectations throughout the weekend. »
