Button looks to apply pressure

Jenson Button says McLaren will be competitive in the traditionally unsettled conditions at Spa © Sutton Images

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Jenson Button says McLaren will be trying to put pressure on Red Bull when racing resumes at the Belgian Grand Prix.

Button currently sits 100 points behind championship leader Sebastian Vettel, with team-mate Lewis Hamilton only 12 points better off. However, Button won the last race before the mid-season break in Hungary, and he says that the last result is a good indicator of how competitive McLaren can be in Belgium.

"It felt great to go into the summer break off the back of the win in Hungary," Button said. "That was a race I think we could just as well have won in the dry as in the damp - which will be worth bearing in mind in Spa, as it'll probably be wet and dry - and everything in between - at some point during the weekend. Once again, our aim will be to put pressure on the championship frontrunners, particularly Red Bull."

With the Spa circuit featuring long straights, Button says the DRS will not be a key part of the weekend as overtaking has always been possible, and he expects even more of the same.

"I don't think DRS will be as critical here as it's been at some of the other circuits. I'm still not certain where it will be deployed, but there's always been lots of opportunities to use the slipstream up the hill out of Eau Rouge to pass into Les Combes. It'll be interesting to see whether DRS can add even more to the show - it should hopefully be another great weekend for Formula 1."

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