McLaren driver retired from the race whilst chasing Valtteri Bottas
Sunday 21 September 2014 18:45, UK
A dejected Jenson Button says he was on course for a sixth-place finish in Singapore before his car cut out eight laps from the end.
It was the first time the McLaren driver had not be a classified finisher since the 2012 Korean GP and the dropped points mean the Woking team have now slipped behind Force India in the Constructors’ Championship.
Having start 11th, Button was running seventh and hunting down the Williams of Valtteri Bottas when the onboard footage showed his engine fall silent and the steering wheel display reset.
“The engine cut off and annoyingly it was just when we started to use modes that we could use to the end of the race because we had saved everything for the end of the race because we knew Bottas’ tyres would go off,” Button told Sky Sports F1.
“And they did, but we couldn’t capitalise because we were parked by the side of the circuit. I think we could have had Bottas’ position, I don’t think we would have caught Felipe [Massa], but we didn’t finish so…”
Racing Director Eric Boullier explained it was a power box failure that had sidelined Button, but praised the Briton for how he had managed his two-stop strategy to that point.
“To score just a single World Championship point, after two hours’ toil in intense heat and humidity, is of course extremely disappointing for the entire team," the Frenchman said.
“For Jenson, who was driving exceptionally well in seventh place, cleverly optimising a tricky two-stop strategy, to be forced to retire with power box failure was an especially bitter blow.
“For Kevin [Magnussen], who had driven such an excellent qualifying lap here yesterday, this afternoon was gruelling; there’s no other word. His first stint was satisfactory, but in stint two he began to experience tyre degradation to a greater degree than we’d predicted, forcing us to convert his strategy from a two-stopper to a three-stopper.
“To add injury to insult, he was then subjected to severe bodily discomfort as his car’s cockpit began to overheat, necessitating his holding his arms aloft, first one then the other, in an effort to direct cooling air down his sleeves and inside his race-suit, which was an unusually painful complication for him.
“In the end, after an impressively plucky drive in extremely challenging conditions, he was able to score a single point for the team. It was scant consolation, of course it was, but it’s indicative of his tremendous fighting spirit, and I commend him for it.”
The Singapore GP is one of the most demanding on the drivers physically, but for Magnussen the hot discomfort caused by the seat led to him branding it “the hardest point I’ve ever earned.”
“It was a very, very tough grand prix. During the race, I don’t know if there was something wrong with the car, but my seat started getting very hot, which made things extremely uncomfortable for me," he added.
“Without that, I think we could have done better than 10th, but at least we got that one point. It’s better than nothing. It was the hardest point I’ve ever earned.”
The result leaves McLaren sixth in the Constructors' Championship, six points behind Force India and should they finish there it would be their worst placing since 1981.
