Jenson Button says “it pains me” to fall tantalisingly close of ending McLaren-Honda’s Q3 drought at the Russian Grand Prix, with the 2009 world champion missing out on the final phase of qualifying by a mere tenth.
In the light of their challenging reunion last season, the British team and Japanese engine manufacturer have been chasing a Q3 spot for over a year.
Hopes of a breakthrough were high after Button and team-mate Alonso showed top-10 pace across free practice in Sochi, only for the Briton to miss the cut by 0.095s.
“We did a reasonably good job all weekend, but it is what it is,” Button said. “The lower temperatures really hurt us as we were close to the tipping point between understeer and oversteer, we were a bit too cautious.
“But I think it was the right thing to do after what happened in the last two qualifying sessions. It pains me we didn’t get 10th place.
“It was so close… We had a good shot at it Q3… The balance was not quite there, so we struggled a bit with that.
“It’s a shame but we’re two tenths off 8th place, so that’s a good step forward. The position doesn’t show it, but it’s a good step forward and hopefully we can show that tomorrow.”
Despite making noticeable headway over the winter, McLaren-Honda remains off the front-running pace though Button is adamant the team is heading in the right direction. Still, the 36-year-old admits he is braced for a tough contest at power-sensitive Sochi Autodrom on Sunday afternoon.
“Last year we qualified P13 when there were 20 cars on the grid, now there are 22 cars and we’re 12th, Button added. “And we’re a lot closer too, so it’s a shame we didn’t make it into Q3.
“I know we say in every race we’re making progress but we really are. Everyone in the team has done a great job to bring new parts to every race, so there’s a good feeling inside the team.
“There are a lot of long straights here and a lot of fuel saving in the race, so that’s going to hurt us tomorrow. We have to make sure we stay in a good pack, near the front, to be able to use DRS, because if we don't, then our day will be more complicated.
“It won’t the easiest of races for us. I think it’s 71 per cent full throttle… Turn Two is always tricky here, so we’ll try to stay out of trouble, gain a few places and then we’ll see what happens.”
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AS IT HAPPENED: Russian Grand Prix - Qualifying
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