Jenson Button has revealed the Istanbul Park circuit is both more challenging and more rewarding to drive in the absence of traction control – whilst dropping the biggest hint yet that he will still be with
Honda in 2009, beyond the expiration of his current contract with the big budget Japanese manufacturer.
The Briton lapped a promising fifth-quickest in opening practice for this weekend's Turkish Grand Prix, and ended the first day a scant nine thousandths of a second outside of the top ten, as both he and Honda bid to add to their first points of the season that came courtesy of a strong charge to sixth place a fortnight ago in Barcelona. Button professed himself pleased with progress made, whilst at the same time warning the race could provide quite a few thrills and spills.
“We made a lot of changes to the car after the morning,” he explained, “when I was struggling with a lack of grip on initial turn-in which you really need around here. The afternoon was much better right from the start of the session. We tried a lot of different things on the set-up, and I'm confident that we know which direction to take for the rest of the weekend.
“It was a bit damp when we first went out in the afternoon, but from then on the track was fine. This circuit is very tough without traction control and you could see a lot of people were making mistakes, but that does make it more fun to watch and drive. I was certainly enjoying it out there!
“The car is working better on the smoother asphalt here and we have made some changes to help with the ride quality, so for me the car feels better than in Barcelona.”
