Saturday: Hamilton and McLaren were aiming for pole today

Lewis Hamilton – 1st and 2nd

« It would have been nice to have pole position, but Red Bull, as always, was very fast in Q3! But we have managed to reach a point where our car works particularly well on certain circuits, and that seems to be the case here. Being so competitive from the start of the weekend is encouraging – we are on the front row, and we can therefore have a good race. And, for the first time in a while, my pace on the long runs seemed good too, and I think we had more fuel than other teams. So I am quite confident for tomorrow actually. »

« I hope to get a good start – I really want to take the first corner first. But if I can’t, I’ll follow Sebastian very closely, I’ll do everything to not let him get more than a second ahead, and then I’ll try to overtake with the DRS. Last year, I started second but braked early at the first corner and Sebastian got through. I simply told him that it wouldn’t happen tomorrow. »

Jenson Button – 4th and 3rd

I didn’t really manage to find a balance that suits me well throughout the weekend. The single-seater changed a lot for the qualifying session. During practice, I had difficulties with the rear; but during qualifying, I suddenly had more grip at the rear and a lot of understeer – so the single-seater seemed completely different.

«Of course, you can do a number of things during qualifying to manage that, so we did everything to make the car healthier, and I am much happier than before as a result. Third is not such a bad spot on the grid – hopefully one of us can be ahead of the Red Bulls tomorrow.»

Martin Whitmarsh – Director of the McLaren Mercedes team

« It might seem a little rude to say that we are a bit disappointed to be second and third today, but to be honest we are a bit disappointed. Being second and third is obviously a great result – it’s a good foundation to try to win tomorrow actually – but I admit that we were aiming for pole position today.»

Lewis and Jenson have both done a superb job – and given their driving qualities, I look forward to the race tomorrow because I expect a good performance from them. Our pace on long runs has been very good throughout the weekend, and I think we are just as good with the mediums and the softs.

« People keep saying that it’s difficult to overtake here in Abu Dhabi – and that’s true. But there are two DRS zones, and obviously the straight before the first corner. Beyond that, you need to have a good strategy, and let’s say we’ll try to put pressure (on Red Bull) tomorrow afternoon!