Jenson Button says Mercedes' struggles which saw it unable to fight for pole position at the Singapore Grand Prix are "better for the whole sport".
Mercedes came in to the Singapore weekend having dominated qualifying since the start of 2014, only failing to be on pole position on one occasion in that period. However, Sebastian Vettel took pole by over half a second on Saturday and was 1.5s clear of Lewis Hamilton in the lead Mercedes.
Button points to his own struggles at one race with Brawn in 2009 as an example of how a track and tyre combination can hurt a team, but he says the end result is just what F1 needed.
"I remember when I won the world championship, we were very strong for quite a few races and we got to Silverstone and we were nowhere, very similar actually to what [Mercedes] have," Button said. "That was circuit dependant and obviously continued through the year but it was a lower temperature thing that caused our issues.
"Maybe it’s a one-off but who knows? Maybe it is going to continue, but there’s no reason why it should continue if you actually look at it. Take this race out, you would never expect them to lose 1.3s from one race to the next. You wouldn’t expect that after Monza and I think when we get to Suzuka you will see them strong again but it’s whether they have the advantage that they’ve enjoyed for 32 races straight.
"Hopefully they’re not going to have the advantage going forward, hopefully there is going to be more of a fight. I think it’s better for the whole sport, I think it’s the shot in the arm the sport needs right now. It’s great to see a mixed up grid at the front. I think it’s good for everyone including Mercedes.”
REPORT: Vettel storms to Singapore pole as Mercedes dominance ends
AS IT HAPPENED: Singapore Grand Prix qualifying
Click here for some of the most memorable crashes at Singapore
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