Button zips into form

Jenson Button enjoyed a return to form with second place in final practice for the German Grand Prix this morning at Hockenheim.

The Honda driver has not scored a point in the last five races but he was back among the front-runners today, only narrowly missing out on top spot.

That honour went to Red Bull’s Christian Klien, whose lap of one minute 15.628 seconds was 0.023secs faster than Button’s best.

Rubens Barrichello also lifted spirits at Honda by taking third while Felipe Massa was fourth for Ferrari.

David Coulthard was an encouraging fifth for Red Bull, just ahead of Renault’s Giancarlo Fisichella.

World championship rivals Fernando Alonso and Michael Schumacher did not trouble the top of the timing sheets as they fine-tuned their cars ahead of qualifying.

Schumacher squeezed into the top 10 in his Ferrari with ninth place while championship leader Alonso, on his 25th birthday, was 11th for Renault.

Alonso’s former team-mate Jarno Trulli had little time to celebrate his new three-year Toyota contract after a mechanical problem stopped him just 13 minutes into the session.

Smoke plumed from the back of his car, raising fears h could need a new engine, which would bring him a 10-place grid penalty.

Sakon Yamamoto prepared for his grand prix debut in an inauspicious manner by slamming into a concrete wall after losing control of his Super Aguri at the final turn.

The fledgling team only have two of their new cars in Germany this weekend and rookie Yamamoto gave his mechanics a race against time.