Jenson Button has moved to diffuse the consternation surrounding footage of
Fernando Alonso apparently taking one - or even both - of his hands off the steering wheel in order to operate Ferrari's F-duct during the Spanish Grand Prix.
Only introduced in Barcelona, the Scuderia's system is different to the one in Button's
McLaren in that it requires the driver to use the back of his left hand - rather than the driver's knee - to block a vent and help stall the rear wing for improved straight-line speed, and, with Alonso unable to complete the manoeuvre and keep his hand fully on the wheel at the same time, on-board footage appeared to show him driving effectively 'no handed' as he also reached down to adjust the F10's brake bias.
Asked during Wednesday's
FIA press conference whether he felt that the film highlighted a conflict with the governing body's 'Make Roads Safe' campaign, Button insisted that too much was being made of the situation.
"We're in a controlled environment, this is very different from driving on the road," the reigning world champion pointed out, "We are professionals, this is what we've grown up doing and we are supposed to be the best in the world at what we do. I think it's wrong to compare it to driving on the road.
"I think the way that we drive on the road is very different to the way we work on the circuit, and the way that we drive on the circuit. I'm a little bit surprised that you try to make out that they are the same.
"I think youngsters are probably more intelligent than [the media are] letting on. I think that they understand that driving on the road is very different than driving in a racing car. It hasn't changed for the last 50 years. There have been professionals in motorsport and there have been kids growing up and driving on the roads. That's not changed. I think kids these days understand the difference between what we do and driving on the M25 around London, for example."
Ferrari, meanwhile, has announced that it will not be using the F-duct at this weekend's Monaco Grand Prix [
HERE] because the circuit does not have a straight where its employment would benefit the drivers.
"We're not using it for a reason,"
Felipe Massa confirmed, "It depends on the track when we use it, and it depends on the track when we don't use it. We always prepare the best for every track we go to so, if we don't have the F-duct on this track, it's because it's better without it. But, for sure, we're going to use it in other races."