• Brazilian Grand Prix

There will be no team orders in Brazil, says Whitmarsh

Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton will both be gunning for victory in Brazil © Sutton Images

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• Race:
• Brazilian Grand Prix

• Championship:
• FIA Formula One World Championship

• Drivers:
• Jenson Button
• |
• Lewis Hamilton

• Teams:
• McLaren

McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh has said that he will not be enforcing team orders between his two drivers over the course of the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend and that both will start with an equal opportunity of winning the race.

Although Lewis Hamilton is still very much in the hunt for the drivers' title and Jenson Button's chances hang by a thread, Whitmarsh said that he would be disappointed if Button did not start with the mindset of winning.

"I think we all know there are no team orders in the sport so I think the right thing for a racing driver is to go there and win," Whitmarsh told the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes phone-in on Wednesday. "I'd be disappointed if Jenson isn't going there trying to win. I think the championship for Jenson in particular is tough but if he was telling me he had given up then I would be deeply disappointed. So I think the right thing is if he is getting his car in front of all of our competitors then that's absolutely the right target. We'll see what happens during the course of the weekend.

"There's a good relationship between the two drivers and I'm sure they're going to co-operate with each other. I think Jenson is a remarkably composed, mature, thinking driver and he should go there with the attitude of trying and seeking to win the race and during the course of the weekend I'm sure he'll be doing everything he can to fulfil the ambitions of the team."

Whitmarsh, however, did not deny that the situation may change if the team finds itself in a strong 1-2 position, presumably with Button leading Hamilton.

"I think that during the race itself we'll see what that situation is. If we are in the fortunate position of running in a strong 1-2 position then that's a nice challenge to have but I think the right frame of mind for the team and both drivers is that we should be going to any event trying to win it and trying to have a 1-2."

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