Button calls for patience with new power unit

Jenson Button says McLaren and Honda need time to understand where it can get the best performance from its upgraded power unit.

Honda spent three tokens to update its power unit ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix weekend, with both drivers receiving hefty grid penalties in order to use new components. Button says he could feel an improvement during Friday practice, though the car itself needs tweaking.

"Yeah, I think we got a little bit more power, but I don’t know how much yet," Button said. "They’re still going through the data and it’s always tricky here, knowing what downforce level to run. I think I’m out of bed a little bit on that one but hopefully we can put that right tomorrow and we can be a little more competitive."

And Button says McLaren needs to be patient as Honda identifies ways of getting more performance from the update.

"There’s always room for improvement and we’ll make sure we do that tonight. There’s a lot of data to look through – obviously this is a new engine, it’s a fresh engine, it’s a different spec and it’s an improvement, but you don’t know how much until you look at the data and there’s so much data; it’s so complex with F1 cars these days that’ll it take time for us to understand where we are.

"I think, in terms of going quicker tomorrow, we understand what we need to do with the car itself, so that’s the important thing."

Click here for Friday's gallery of the Belgian Grand Prix

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