Sunday: Button and Magnussen finish just off the podium for McLaren in Sochi
Very good overall result for the two McLaren drivers who return from Sochi with big points. Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen achieve their best group performance since the first Grand Prix in Australia, early March.
Jenson Button (No. 22) – 4th
The British world champion is satisfied with his performance this weekend and today’s race: « Clearly, it was not a bad day at all. I acknowledge that we got the most out of the car. I had a little scare at turn #3 on the first lap when Fernando and I were very close to each other, but apart from that, it was quite an encouraging race. »
The performance of the tires reminded Button of the good old days during the race: « It was strange to see that we could do so many laps on a single set of tires. It was a bit like a return to the old school of racing. The track surface in Austin is similar to this one, we’ll see how the tires behave there too. »
Kevin Magnussen (no.17) – 5th
The young Dane had embarked on an aggressive race, quickly rewarded by a blistering start: « I decided to go full throttle from the beginning to gain as many positions as possible relative to my grid position and it worked. I had an excellent first lap, and I found myself in fifth position very quickly. »
But for him too, fuel consumption issues have hindered his progress: « However, it cost me because I had to save a lot of fuel, especially in the second half of the race. I was really surprised that no one caught up with me. In fact, I think the guys behind me had the same problem. »
