Button resigned to wait for first win

Jenson Button admits he may have to wait until 2008 to finally win a grand prix, but has vowed no let up in his quest.

The English driver starts his 108th grand prix on home ground on Sunday but has already primed his Silverstone fans for another winless weekend.

Honda have dropped off the pace of world championship rivals Renault and Ferrari in the past few races and Button arrives on home turf with only an outside hope of a podium, let alone victory.

But the 26-year-old is adamant Honda can deliver him a winning car – even if he has to wait another two years.

Asked about his 107-race wait for victory, he said: “If you haven’t got a car to win a race what does a number mean? It means nothing at all.

“It might happen this race, it’s very unlikely, it might happen in four races time or next year or the year after.

“But nothing changes, you still give 100%, you give everything you can to reach your goal. It’s a team effort, it’s not down to one individual. We need to improve and as a team we are doing that.”

After his low-key weekend in Monaco two weeks ago, Button is thrust back into the limelight at Silverstone, where he faces the annual awkward questions about that elusive first win.

His primary concern is to restore Honda to the podium after just one so far this season, before then worrying about taking the top step on the rostrum.

“I hope we have a chance of getting more podiums this season,” he added. “Obviously I hope we can win a race but that doesn’t make the car go quicker. “I can’t do any more, there is no outside pressure to do any more.”

Button’s dismal Monaco Grand Prix, in which he finished a distant 11th, dampened expectations ahead of his home race and he reiterated Honda’s status as midfielders at Silverstone today.

The Frome-born driver admits Renault and Ferrari are out of reach, with McLaren also looking too hot to handle, and has limited his ambitions this weekend to “getting the best out of the package we have”.

He added: “We are not going to suddenly jump forward compared to Monaco and previous races. Renault and Ferrari are very strong at the moment and I think McLaren are too.

“It is very difficult – it is so competitive. For us to say where we are going to finish is a silly thing to do.”

But he retains belief in Brackley-based Honda to eventually deliver the goods and finally put him on top of the world.

“In the future, definitely,” he said. “Every team would hope they can challenge Renault and Ferrari in the future. That is why we are here – to be the best.

“It’s not going to happen overnight. We are improving things so for the future I am very positive that we will be challenging at the front.”

For the first time since 2003, Button was forced to watch from the sidelines as the Union Jack flew over the Monaco podium, celebrating David Coulthard’s unexpected third place.

Red Bull’s first-ever podium came as a result of a canny drive from the Scot, combined with problems for several front-runners, and he is not expecting a repeat at Silverstone.

The 35-year-old said: “Clearly there were a number of things in our favour, people dropped out and got penalties. But I think all weekend we were always in the top six.

“At that type of track the car worked well, it’s on the more open circuits where we don’t have the best package. This track will probably be a bit different for us.”