Following his retirement from the race in Bahrain at the last round of the 2016 Formula One season, Jenson Button will receive a new engine, already his second of the season, for the Chinese Grand Prix this weekend.
Despite being confident they have resolved the issue experienced at the Sakhir circuit, when a sudden loss of power saw the Brit have to retire the MP4-31 to the side-lines, just seven laps into the grand prix, Honda have decided to change the internal combustion unit, although they believe they have pin pointed the actual issue itself and there should be no repeat in Shanghai.
Speaking to Autosport.com Honda chief Yusuke Hasegawa, advised:
“There was a mechanical issue on Jenson’s ICE which we will replace for the upcoming race weekend. The situation has been thoroughly investigated and will be rectified in all future engines to be used.”
Though it was a disappointing race for the Brit, Button was left optimistic that performance levels had improved:
“Until the point when we lost power, the car had felt very good, and I’m hopeful that we can continue that momentum in Shanghai and make the most of the package we have.”
Button will be hoping to put in a strong showing in China, after being outperformed by Fernando Alonso replacement, Stoffel Vandoorne during qualifying, who also made the perfect debut by scoring McLaren’s first point of the year, as the 2009 World champion could only watch on from the pits. The Brit will now want the opportunity to show his worth, here in Shanghai.
