Button happy with points and 'enjoyable' afternoon of racing

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Jenson Button brought his McLaren home in the points for the seventh time this season, ending his day at the US Grand Prix in ninth place.

The Brit rocketed off the grid from P19 and was all the way up into 11th place by the end of the first lap! He then got the best of Esteban Gutierrez and stabilized his performance around P10.

“I’m pretty happy to get into the points after a frustrating day yesterday," said Button.

"The start was a bit of a crazy mess – there was so much action. Starting 19th makes your race a little bit more difficult but I had a good first couple of laps which I really enjoyed.

"I went over some debris early on when I was fighting with Gutierrez and lost a lot of front end. But I think it might have cleared but the rubber build-up on the front wing was unbelievable and hurt the downforce level a lot. "

Button's second half of the race was perhaps as boring as the first part had been eventful as the McLaren driver focused on bring his car home in the points safe and sound.

"The second half of the race for me wasn’t as exciting – I was looking after the tyres, judging the gap behind me, and trying to save the tyres to the end of the race to attempt to catch Checo [Perez], but I think I was about three seconds off at the end.

"I came home ninth which isn’t too bad, and it’s great to get some good points for the team on both sides of the garage. "

Beyond his personal result and the points for himself and the team that went with it, Button admitted it had simply been a fun day at the races.

'I made some strong overtakes – some good, clean scraps – especially into Turn One, and I had a lot of fun fighting my way through, which made it a lot more enjoyable.

"For the rest of the season, it’s important that we work on our Saturdays – trying not to make bad decisions and qualifying closer to the top 10, which means you have a lot more to fight with.

"Hopefully the next race in Mexico City will be a good one – I’m already excited about it – and hopefully we can get a good result there."

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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.