Both Honda cars in the points at Turkey
The Honda Racing F1 Team continued its rich vein of form at the Turkish Grand Prix this afternoon. Jenson Button finished the 58-lap race in fourth place, and Rubens Barrichello took the final World Championship point in eighth place.
The race started well for Jenson who, despite starting on the dirty side of the grid in sixth place, managed to gain one position into the first corner. Rubens, starting 13th, had to avoid a first corner collision ahead of him and dropped to 16th place as he was forced to run wide.
The opening laps were fraught for both of the drivers. Jenson moved up to fourth place after a brilliant overtaking manoeuvre on Mark Webber, while Rubens was quickly up to 13th place, behind Jarno Trulli.
Race strategies had to be altered on lap 14 when the Safety Car was deployed due to a stranded car at Turn 1. Jenson pitted immediately, coming out just behind Michael Schumacher in fourth place, while Rubens opted not to pit and to gain track position.
When the safety car went in two laps later, Jenson was fourth and Rubens ninth, and by the time of Rubens’ first pitstop on lap 27 he had climbed up to sixth place. He emerged in ninth and made one more pitstop, on lap 44, before coming home in a fighting eighth place, just 0.6s behind Ralf Schumacher.
Jenson, meanwhile, had a strong race at the front of the field. He made his second pitstop on lap 39 and was the fastest car on the track for much of the last quarter of the race, setting his fastest lap on the final lap of the race.
The Honda Racing F1 Team now heads to the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza in Italy for an extensive test session next week prior to the Italian Grand Prix on 10 September.
Jenson Button “It’s been a great race for the team today and it’s good to get both cars in the points. We just didn’t have the pace of the Ferraris or Alonso in the Renault but we know where we’re weaker and where we’re losing out to them, so when we get on top of that we’re going to be very competitive. The last stint was very strong for us. We had a lot less tyre graining and I was getting quicker and quicker. Not quite as good as my result in the last race but a good weekend nonetheless.”
Rubens Barrichello "I'm really happy that we finished with two cars in the points today. We had a competitive car today so it was a shame that someone pushed me wide on the first corner which lost me a lot of time. Without that incident I could have been up there fighting closer to the front. We had the pace and we certainly had the will today, so I think that the team certainly deserved the result as well. It was really good to hear the Brazilian national anthem at the end of the race for my good friend Felipe Massa and I congratulate him on his first win."
Gil de Ferran, Sporting Director “What an exciting race! We are very pleased to have both cars in the points, which is a great result at the end of a generally satisfying weekend. Jenson was fortunate to not get caught up in the first turn incident and drove a faultless race from there, pushing very hard all the way. In the end though, we weren't quite quick enough to challenge for the podium today. Rubens was less fortunate in the first turn and lost quite a few places, however he showed excellent speed and determination as he drove back through the field, fighting until the very end. Both engines performed reliably in their second race, even though Rubens used all the revs possible throughout the race. In summary we leave Turkey happy but aware that there is still some improvement needed. Congratulations to Felipe Massa on his well-deserved first win!"
