McLaren close to Q3

There were some points this season which we would have never have thought it would have been possible this quickly, but McLaren came very close to getting into the final part of qualifying for the first time this season.

It had already been expressed that the Monaco weekend could be the most important for the team all season, with it being the most likely place they are going to get points, and this could still be possible tomorrow, especially with the Toro Rosso’s ahead you usually fall back through the race.

Starting 10th after penalties, Jenson Button felt that he could have easily been in the top 10, but was stopped thanks to Nico Rosberg who brought out the yellow flags at St Devote in the first corner at the end of the second session, he said, “There’s always a bit of ‘shoulda woulda coulda’ in qualifying, but I would have easily been inside the top 10 today.

“On my final lap in Q2, I lost a lot of time lifting for the yellow flag at Turn One. I then gained a lot of it back – I was only a tenth off my best – but it wasn’t enough. And I think we could have had some fun in Q3, too – I think we’d have been fighting two or three cars for position.

“The car felt really good – although we still don’t have enough outright pace – but I have a lot of confidence in it, especially under braking. Today’s performance shows the progress we’re making. The team has done a fantastic job this weekend, and they should be happy because the car is getting better all the time.

“This is a nice little stepping stone for the future. Our aim tomorrow will be to score points.”

His team mate also looked like he was going to have a good qualifying session, although pulled off the circuit at St Devote, not setting a representative time to start in 15th for the race, "We don’t exactly know what happened to my car in Q2: I guess it was something electrical because the car switched itself off in the middle of the straight. I had no power, no electrics, and no readout on the steering wheel.

“But, overall, the team’s performance has been better this weekend, and Jenson at least has the opportunity to score a few points tomorrow.

“I don’t wish to sound pessimistic, but, in the Monaco Grand Prix, the race finishes on Saturday afternoon. On Sunday, you just join a train of cars. Starting 14th, hopefully we can gain some experience of the car, and improve its performance and reliability. We’re still too fragile at the moment.”

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