McLaren still in contention for title: Button

Briton driver enthusiastic about improvements in car.

Jenson Button insists McLaren should not be counted out of the championship fight just yet despite their sluggish start to the new season, according to Sky Sports.

After the first two races of the year, the 2009 world champion is already 38 points behind reigning title winner Sebastian Vettel after picking up just a solitary ninth-place finish so far —but both driver and team have been buoyed by the step forward they made with the troublesome MP4-28 at Sepang.

Button felt he had been on course for a podium finish in Malaysia when a botched final pit stop dropped him a lap behind the leaders, and the 33-year-old says the improvement in the car’s pace in the space of just seven days between Melbourne and Sepang was an encouraging boost.

“The championship is still on as far as I am concerned and I am definitely aiming for that,” said Button. “It’s a massive turnaround for us. During most of the race in Sepang, we were quicker than Lotus and Ferrari. Who would have thought that only five days before?”

Button acknowledged they still had plenty of work ahead of them, but he is taking heart from both the open nature of the season so far and the ongoing development work at Woking.

“The car is still not perfected, it was really thrown together for Sepang,” he added.

“The great thing is there are so many cars that are competitive and taking points off each other, which is exactly what we need. I am a very happy driver at the moment knowing we have improved so much.

“And I know what the team can achieve over the next few weeks to take a strong car to in China. I have gone from being pretty down in Melbourne to being a lot more positive in the five days between the first two races.”

Published in The Express Tribune, April 3^rd, 2013.