Jenson Button was full of praise for the new Honda engine, claiming it was the biggest improvement made by the manufacturers since the McLaren partnership began.
It’s not entirely clear how much of a step up McLaren have made so far, but the team have looked impressive so far in the second test.
Button was fifth on the soft compound tyres today, behind the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel and four-tenths off his teammates time yesterday.
“I would say it is the biggest improvement I have felt with the power unit over the last 14 months.” Button said.
“The improvements are good, but we are still a long way off the other guys and you can see that in the speed traps. But you can definitely feel the difference on the initial part of the straight.
“There are a lot more bits coming, hopefully this week and some more in Melbourne for P1.”
The 36-year-old was also pleased with the number of laps he was able to do in the car.
“The important thing is we are able to do quite a few laps which shows the reliability and I think we have sorted – fingers crossed.” Jenson said.
“We have really pushed the performance with the power unit.”
Alonso will take over from Button tomorrow, with the Brit set to round-up McLaren’s winter testing on Friday.
