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McLaren: MP4-25 Not Developed for Hamilton

Jenson Button's leaving to McLaren Mercedes will not damage his chances of retaining his Formula One crown in 2010. And we're not talking about the usual rumors suggesting that he'll have to play second fiddle to Lewis Hamilton, but the way in which the McLaren MP4-25 will be designed for the its upcoming campaign in the series.

As we all know, the development work put up by the McLaren technicians on the MP4-25 started months ago, once it was very clear that the team would have no chance at clinching a title in 2009. Obviously, the cockpit and structure of the car was made based on McLaren's last year drivers, as compared to which Button is significantly taller.

As Button's joining the team (theoretically) took place earlier this month – as we have no information that the reigning world champion has planned the move before the Abu Dhabi season finale – it was only natural for some concerns to be raised regarding the way he'll fit into the 2010 challenger.

However, according to McLaren Mercedes' engineering director Paddy Lowe, the photographs taken of Button prior to his arrival at Woking seem to indicate the fact that the 29-year old would fit just fine in the MP4-25.

Although Jenson is a little taller than Lewis, we've used photographs to work out some rough measurements and we're happy that Jenson will comfortably fit,” Lowe allegedly told the Daily Express during the course of last weekend.

In addition, Lowe insisted that the MP4-25, much like all the cars McLaren has designed for their F1 operations in recent years, was not projected based on Hamilton's driving style. He actually argued that this would be against the basics of F1 development, as “you tend to design a racing car to be as neutral as possible.”
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