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'I'll be fighting until it's no longer possible' - Button

Jenson Button is focusing on winning the title from fifth place © Getty Images

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• Race:
• Brazilian Grand Prix

• Championship:
• FIA Formula One World Championship

• Drivers:
• Jenson Button

• Teams:
• McLaren

Jenson Button is not giving up on his title defence despite lying fifth in the standings and 42 points off championship leader Fernando Alonso.

Button's title chances took a major hit at the Korean Grand Prix when he finished 12th, after suffering severe handling problems during the wet race. However, he said he would not give up on the championship over the final two races.

"I've always said that I will fight until it's mathematically impossible," Button told his official website. "Sure, looking at it written down on paper, you've got to admit it's a long-shot, but I'd regret it for the rest of my life if I chose not to go for it, and then circumstances transpired to give me a full run at the title.

"So, for me, the situation's the same: I'll be fighting until it's no longer possible for me. In Formula One, you just never know. It's totally possible that I could win at Interlagos, take home maximum points and have none of the other title contenders finish. If it's another wet race that could easily happen. Basically, you learn early on in this sport that it's not over until it's over."

He admitted that McLaren's performances at recent races had been inconsistent but was confident the car could compete with Red Bull and Ferrari in the right circumstances.

"Our performance has been a little bit up and down recently. We nearly had the pace to win in Monza, we looked faster than the Red Bulls in Singapore, and our race pace was very good at Suzuka. So it's difficult to say precisely where we are. In Korea, we looked extremely quick during all the practice sessions, only to see that pace narrow in qualifying and the race. So I think we have every reason to still feel optimistic."

Button revealed that McLaren would have another set of upgrades for the car in Brazil and was confident they could make the difference.

"For Brazil, we're bringing more updates to the car," he added. "That's something that's always impressed me about this team, the pace of development is just incessant and everybody is so determined to make the car faster. We're always trying out new parts, and making changes. We haven't backed off the development stream just yet, so, once again, we're hopeful of another step forward in performance for Brazil. It's a track that should suit us, so I'm already looking forward to it."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.