Fantastic end of the season for Honda

The Honda Racing F1 Team ended the 2006 Formula One season on a high note today, when Jenson Button drove a stunning race at Interlagos to finish third. It was his third podium of the year and his seventh consecutive points finish. Capping a good day for the team, Rubens Barrichello came home in seventh place.

Jenson asserted prior to the start that he’d drive an aggressive race, and that’s exactly what he did. On lap one he moved up from 14th on the grid to 10th place, and by lap 22 he had climbed up to third place, just 4.5s behind Fernando Alonso. In this early part of the race, the only time that Jenson wasn’t overtaking people was from laps two to six, when the Safety Car was on the track.

Rubens made a good start as well, converting his fifth place grid position away from the line. But he was overtaken later in the lap by two cars, which dropped him to seventh place. He went on to benefit from the retirements of two drivers ahead of him and was up to fifth place by the time of his first pitstop on lap 21.

Jenson made his first pitstop on lap 25, from which he rejoined the race in seventh place, just behind Kimi Raikkonen. Jenson was quicker than the McLaren driver and he pulled a fantastic overtaking manoeuvre on Kimi into Turn 1 on lap 29 to take fourth place.

At this stage, Jenson was just one second behind Alonso and that’s where he remained for the remainder of the 71-lap race, even when he made his second pitstop on lap 50. At the end of the race, he crossed the line 0.7s behind the Spaniard, whose second place won him his second World Championship.

Rubens drove at a consistent pace throughout the race. In the closing laps Michael Schumacher – who was driving in his final grand prix – overtook him on lap 50 after a close dice.

Jenson finishes the 2006 World Championship in sixth place, with 56 points, and Rubens in seventh place, with 30 points. The Honda Racing F1 Team finishes fourth in the Constructors Championship with 86 points.

“I’m thrilled to end the season on the podium, especially coming through from 14th on the grid yet again and after the problem we experienced yesterday. This result came out of a genuine fight, with the car showing great competitiveness. It was one of the most enjoyable races I have experienced. It’s only natural to think about where we could have finished if we had been able to start further up the grid, but we shouldn’t take anything away from a great result and a very strong second half of the season. My thanks to everyone in the team, and all our partners and fans. This is a fantastic way to go into the winter when I’m sure we will all have the motivation to push harder for a much stronger 2007 season.”

"It was tough for me today. I couldn't get a rhythm in the car and I was having some difficulties with the handling, but still we got two cars in the points once again. Jenson had a good race coming from the back to get on the podium, so it's a strong end of the season for us. I have to say that I struggled this year with the car but we have the winter to work hard with the benefit of all the lessons we have learned this season. I would also like to congratulate Felipe on his fantastic win today. We all get in life what we deserve, and he has had a great weekend. My thanks to everyone associated with our team for a great first season with Honda. Now I’m looking forward to 2007."

“What a great way to finish the season and what a spectacular drive by Jenson to come all the way from 14th to the podium once again! Jenson had a good start and made up a lot of places on the first lap. After that he was flying, executing some brilliantly judged overtaking manoeuvres. Once he caught up with Alonso, he put up a good fight to try and pass him for second. Rubens raced hard throughout, posing a strong challenge to Fisichella who was on a similar strategy.

“Today is a day of many milestones. First of all, well done to Fernando Alonso on a much-deserved second World Championship title. Many congratulations and best wishes to Michael Schumacher on a brilliant and inspiring career that brought many F1 fans a lot of joy over 15 years of spectacular racing. Many thanks also to the founders of this team, British American Tobacco, and title sponsor Lucky Strike, in what is their last race, for their confidence, support and vision. Lastly we should also thank our partners – particularly Michelin – and the many talented Honda team members in Japan and the UK for the tremendous effort and dedication which has culminated in this great final result of the season.”