F1 Jensen is on the Button for China
;)
;)
Brawn’s drivers post first and third fastest times in Shanghai test runs.
Jenson Button continued to exploit the benefits of the Brawn car design with the quickest practice time in China ahead of the Grand Prix on Sunday.
Formula One’s newest team set the pace in Shanghai, with Button recording the fastest time, coming in at 1 minute 35.679 seconds. Team mate Rubens Barrichello recorded the third fastest time, just slightly behind Nico Rosberg’s Williams car.
Lewis Hamilton showed an impressive start in his McLaren in the morning session, recording the quickest lap after the first session. However, Hamilton dropped down the pegging order to 13th fastest in the second session which was dominated by Brawn and Williams. As the other drivers improved their times, Hamilton remained consistent, improving his time by just 0.4 seconds from the earlier session.
Whilst McLaren struggled in the second session, the Red Bull team took advantage of the waning progression, posting strong times from both Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel to finish fourth and fifth place overall. Ferrari are another team which languished in mediocrity, with Felipe Massa coming in 12th and Kimi Raikkonen finishing 14th in the standings.
The key talking point over the past few weeks has been the all important Brawn diffuser. The innovative design which gives greater traction for the Brawn cars allows Button and Barrichello to come through the corners a lot faster than their competitors.
Earlier this week, Brawn were accused of breaking the F1 regulations with their diffuser design and Button could have been in danger of having his 15 point lead in the Championship stripped from him. However, the sport’s governing officials ruled the diffuser was legal and Brawn maintain their grip on the field this year.
As the drivers are only too keen to stress however, it’s not all about the car, which is good news for McLaren and Ferrari. Hamilton won the Chinese Grand Prix last year, and Raikkonen won it the year before. Both drivers know how to perform in Shanghai, and come Sunday, the pressure will be on Button to prove his talents over his team’s technical proficiency.
