Lucky Strike B·A·R Honda's Jenson Button will start tomorrow's
United States Grand Prix from the second row of the grid after posting the
3rd fastest lap in this afternoon's qualifying session. Takuma Sato ended
the session 8th, despite a big set-up change after this morning's practice,
and he will line up in a fourth-row grid slot for the start of the 73-lap
race.
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Jenson Button |
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Jenson Butto |
Free practice running today was rather unusual as the Michelin-teams modified
their programmes according to the advice of the tyre manufacturer after their
overnight analysis of yesterday's tyre problems. B·A·R Honda
will continue to assist Michelin in their investigations and welcome their
guidance to ensure the best possible outcome for tomorrow's race.
Jenson Button, Position: 3rd
"It's nice to get two good qualifying sessions in a row following our pole in
Montreal but it wasn't the best lap really for me today. We're definitely in
better shape than yesterday and have made quite a few improvements to the car
which is nice to see. However, I struggled with very low grip and understeer
on my lap, so I was a little surprised at the time because it felt like a tough
lap. Still, it's great to be third and I think we can do good things from here.
Our strategy is a good one so I'm looking forward to tomorrow."
Takuma Sato, Position: 8th
"It was a little bit difficult for me today because I used a different set-up
in qualifying from this morning's practice. We needed to find a lot of speed
after the Friday practice so we decided to go different ways with the two cars
this morning. I had a relatively good lap but we suffered a little with straightline
speed. I am hopeful for a good performance from the car tomorrow."
Geoffrey Willis - Technical Director
"We had quite a productive day. We made several changes overnight and ran
the two cars very differently this morning, and the outcome was that the preferred
set-up was the one we ran on Jenson's car. Taku did a good job in qualifying
on an unfamiliar car, as did Jenson to qualify third. We finish today reasonably
satisfied and positive about our chances tomorrow. With regards to the tyre situation
for tomorrow, we await Michelin's decision and have confidence in their judgement."
Shuhei
Nakamoto - Engineering Director, Honda Racing Development
"We had a better day today with both drivers doing a good job in the qualifying
session. It is important that we turn our pace into points this weekend."
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June 18, 2005
