Jenson Button ended his afternoon's work in Spain down in a lackluster 16th position at the wheel of his ill-handling McLaren.

Button's race was hampered by the McLaren's very unprogressive and nervous rear end, forcing its driver to reign in any attempts to drive around the problem.

"Friday, the long runs were good but today the car was pretty scary to drive," Button admitted. "Every time I touched the throttle, it was just snap. In low speed corners it's slow because you get wheel spin immediately, and at high speed, it's very scary. As soon as you touch the power it snaps immediately. It's not a gradual snap as you usually get, it's very weird, but I'm sure there's something wrong."

As the race progressed, the British driver tried to sort out the problem by communicating over the radio with the team, but to no effect. "We made some switch changes during the race and it improved a bit in the last stint but still, it was scary to drive. It's obviously a set-up issue so I don't think it was as bad for Fernando.

As McLaren now set their sights on Monaco, Button admits the team still remains a long way from scoring some meaningful points in light of today's issues.

"Hopefully today was an off-day, it didn't feel right. The weekend has been reasonably good for us, and I've been happy with the way the car has been. But it was like flicking a switch in the race, there was no grip at the rear from the word go. We'll just have to look at it."

Click here for Sunday's gallery from the Spanish Grand Prix

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.

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