Jenson Button gave fans a glimpse of things to come, as he shocked the sport with a P3 finish in the second free practice session of the Bahrain Grand Prix. This was achieved in his McLaren, the team that has struggled to find the pace since reuniting with Honda.
Although it may seem like a cruel April Fool’s joke, the McLaren-Honda of Jenson Button actually managed to set a lap time of 1:32.281, the third fastest time of the entire day. This placed the McLaren drive directly below the Mercedes duo in free practice two. Although he was over 1.2 seconds slower than Nico Rosberg’s leading Mercedes, Button’s fastest lap was slightly faster than the lap time set by Rosberg in the previous session.
This result shocked many, as McLaren has been in an uphill battle since they decided to form their partnership with Honda. The team spent most of last season fighting of power unit gremlins and searching for some form of pace in the car. This frustrated their drivers when they were only able to earn a highest finishing position of fifth in 2015, whereas they had managed to finish on the podium the season prior.
Although the team’s pace has greatly improved during the winter, today’s pace is probably not a glimpse of their race pace for the Bahrain Grand Prix. Since it’s practice, most teams are simply trying to log some mileage and complete some setup work for the race. Even if this pace doesn’t carry over to the race, it will be interesting to see how this moral boost improves the team’s performance in the race.
On the other side of the garage, Stoffel Vandoorne made his Formula One debut, as he prepares for his first race on Sunday. He is filling in for Fernando Alonso, who was not allowed to race following a heavy accident in the season opener.
Alonso Explains The Extent Of His Injuries
Alonso Not Medically Cleared For Bahrain
McLaren Renews Johnnie Walker Partnership
Button: “A lot more that we need to achieve”
