Button's knee issue no problem for British Grand Prix
By Jonathan Noble and Geoff Creighton
Sunday, July 3rd 2011, 14:19 GMT
Jenson Button will be fully fit for next weekend's British Grand Prix despite a minor jet-ski injury forcing him to abandon plans to run in a 2008 Formula 1 McLaren at Goodwood yesterday.
The Briton knocked his knee during filming with the BBC in London earlier this week, and it was decided that he would be better off not driving the F1 car at the Goodwood Festival of Speed as he had originally intended to.
Although that change of plans prompted questions about his fitness for his home race at Silverstone, both driver and team insist that pulling out of the Goodwood run was purely precautionary and he will be raring to go later this week.
A McLaren spokesman told AUTOSPORT: "Jenson drove a McLaren MP4-12C road car and a McLaren MP4-12C GT3 race car at Goodwood yesterday.
"He didn't drive a McLaren Formula 1 car, for purely precautionary reasons, in order to protect a small bump he'd received on his left knee during a jet ski event in London last week. But he isn't even limping, and he'll be fighting fit for Silverstone, as usual."
The 2009 world champion played down the issue during an interview with Festival of Speed Radio at the event.
"Just got a little niggly pain and it's not worth pushing it, I want to relax it for the Silverstone grand prix and that's the only reason," he said. "It's all fine, but it's also great fun driving this [MP4-12C], because we don't drive the F1 cars up the hill very fast, we're doing burnouts and what have you, but this thing I can actually drive quick so it's probably the first time I've driven up here quick."
Button is heading into the British GP as Sebastian Vettel's closest challenger in the championship - although he is 77 points adrift of the Red Bull Racing driver.
Credit: AUTOSPORT.COM (www.autosport.com)
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