Friday: At McLaren, Button and Hamilton prefer dry conditions

Jenson Button – 3rd and 3rd

« Despite the changing weather, I think we’ve learned a bit today. We didn’t do as many laps in the dry as we would have hoped, but we’re still making some progress. I tried two different rear wing configurations today—and each has its pros and cons. The wet weather didn’t make comparisons easy, and it will be a bit of a challenge to decide which direction to go in terms of settings, but I’m sure we’ll get there. From my side, I think it would have been more fun to drive with DRS through Eau Rouge—but on the other hand, I think the FIA made the right decision: you lose so much downforce when you activate the DRS that it is safer to keep it closed in that corner. Definitely, I’d prefer the race to be dry on Sunday. I acknowledge that we always do a good job in the wet, but I think we are very strong in the dry. The Red Bulls are very strong in the second sector too, but we are really in good overall shape ».

Lewis Hamilton – 5th and 4th

« We had two laps on the dry during FP2, but we didn’t do much due to the changing weather conditions. In fact, we spent most of the day doing installation laps to try the wings and find out what level of downforce to use. We look very good in the rain, but I think the car is very strong on the dry too. It is quite difficult to get a competitive setup with or without DRS, so it will be quite tight – although it seems the same usual cars will be at the front. I had a big scare approaching Blanchimont during FP1. I went over a small river on the track – I was around 240 km/h – and suddenly lost control. I’m glad I was alert enough to correct it, otherwise we could have ended up without all four wheels and both wings! The top 3 or 4 seem quite competitive: now, our challenge is to make the right choices with the wings and the level of downforce ».