As Formula 1 heads to Japan, the final realistic chances of points for the McLaren team this season are all but gone. In front of their home crowd, Honda will be looking to put on a show but their chances this weekend are very slim. On the upside, the McLaren should at least deal with Suzuka’s fast corners pretty well. On what could be the final Japanese Grand Prix for Jenson Button who is quite popular here, he will be looking to perform too at a circuit which he has won at in the past.
2015 Japanese Grand Prix McLaren Preview
No. 14 Fernando Alonso
Form: 10/5/13/18/R
2014: Grid: P5; Race: Retired on lap 2 (electronics)
Other than inheriting a race win from Michael Schumacher back in 2006 (and a win at Fuji in 2008), Alonso has not had a massive amount of success at Suzuka, despite delivering some very strong drives in the past. It is a circuit where both he and Button go pretty well, so the intra-team battle here should be very interesting to watch if both cars somehow manage to run reliably. One positive for Alonso should be that Singapore was his non-classification since Austria and his first due to a mechanical problem since Canada.
No. 22 Jenson Button
Form: R/9/14/14/R
2014: Grid: P8; Race: P5
2011 winner Button had a very strong race here last year, finishing fifth behind the two Mercedes and Red Bull cars. He has generally gone strong here as has his team mate, but as this is one of his favourite races, he will be looking to try and sneak some points on what is expected to be his final Japanese Grand Prix. He is expected to announce his retirement from the sport at some point this week, with a possible switch to the World Endurance Championship on the cards.
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