Q. If you could win the Monaco Grand Prix or the British Grand Prix in 2011, which one would you choose?
Jenson Button: The British Grand Prix. It’s the one I haven’t won and I’d love to win it. I’ve won the Monaco Grand Prix and I’d love to win it again, but there are three things that every driver wants to win: the F1 World Championship, the Monaco GP and your home GP. I’ve won the first two, so Silverstone is top of the list of races I want to win this year.
Q. How special was your Monaco win in 2009?
JB: It was unbelievable. When you win the race, you don’t just think “I’ve won”; you think back to qualifying as well because that’s when you’ve really got the car on the limit. You can barely fit a piece of paper between your wheel and barrier most of the way around.
Q. Describe the intensity of a qualifying lap at Monaco…
JB: You feel like you’re more on the limit than at any other track and that’s due to the barriers. It feels like you’re doing 400mph! You drive an F1 car every other weekend, so it’s not as if you’re not used to the speed; it’s just the incredible feeling that driving at Monaco gives you.
Q. Do you have time to feel frightened?
JB: You don’t feel scared, but a qualifying lap is one of those laps where you feel like you’ve held your breath all the way around. As you cross the line, you breathe out and look at your dashboard. If your time is good enough for pole position, it’s an amazing feeling.
Q. What will it be like to use DRS at this race?
JB: We’re going to have to be very strict about when we use it during qualifying. You’ll also be disengaging the DRS earlier than normal because you’ll want to ensure it’s properly connected when you hit the brakes. If you lock the rears, you’re in the wall at Monaco. It’s as simple as that.
Q. Will the DRS generate more overtaking?
JB: I don’t think so, but tyre degradation might help. If you’re on a completely different pitstop strategy to the person in front, you might be able to muscle your way past.
Q. Will tyre marbles be a big issue in the race?
JB: Until we start running on the track, we won’t know the level of marbles we will see, however there could be mountains of marbles! The circuit is going to get higher off-line as they build-up. It’s going to be incredible and you won’t be able to make any mistakes. If you lock up a tyre and run a tiny bit wide, you’re going to hit the wall because you’ll have no grip on those marbles. But that is the nature of Monaco, with or without marbles.
Q. Does the back-to-back nature of Barcelona and Monaco make the race more tiring?
JB: On the Monday after Spain I was still quite elated because it was a good race for me and the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team, considering the start. I did some recovery training on Monday, just to help my body; on Tuesday I felt fine and did the half-Iron Man bike route in the hills above Monaco and on Wednesday I did a swim. Then it was into the race weekend. Monaco is such a tough weekend and it’s not just physical, it’s mental. You feel a bit claustrophobic because it’s like a goldfish bowl. Everyone can see your every move from the boats, from the banks.
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