I had to have a go explains Button

Jenson Button was always going to be playing a weakened hand in Sunday afternoon's Monaco Grand Prix. Consigned to the back of the grid, following a power unit component change, the team's strategists decided to box him on lap one and allow him to run an alternative strategy in clear air.

But that call was immediately stymied by Sauber's decision to box Pascal Wehrlein on the same lap. Notwithstanding the five-second penalty awarded to Wehrlein for an unsafe pit-stop release, the first-lap strategy call defined the rest of Jenson's afternoon.

With no easy route past the Sauber, the team again adjusted the strategy on the fly, pitting Jenson for a set of Options at half distance. He caught the German and attempted to pass him on the inside at Portier. The pair collided heavily – Wehrlein's car ending up sideways in the tyre-wall, and Jenson's parked at the end of the harbor-front escape road with a broken left-front corner.

“Today was a disappointing day and one where we couldn't make any progress. The race was made very difficult from lap one, and then obviously the incident happened with Pascal [Wehrlein]. His tyres were completely gone from lap one – I know because I had the same set of tyres on from the start of the race after I pitted just after the start,” Jenson explained.

“I had a lot more traction coming out of the previous corner, because when these tyres go on the marbles they have no grip. I thought I was a long way up the inside and then I looked across and saw that he hadn't seen me, so I tried to back out, but obviously it was too late by then.”

“You do struggle to see in these cars, but you don't think in that moment that the guy's not going to see me when you go up the inside. I gave it a go and thought it was a fair enough judgment, but it didn't work out. You never like seeing a car tip over because you don't know if his head's going to hit anything, but the most important thing is that Pascal is okay – I spoke to him and he's a bit shaken of course but the best thing is he walked out okay. “

“Today was a bit frustrating, but, as a racing driver, it's difficult to just drive around at the back and not get to have a go. I had a go, and thought it was a fair enough judgement, but it didn't work out. I'm sorry to the team for even more damage this weekend. I enjoyed some laps today too, but obviously I never want to damage that car, and it's not something I do very often. Yesterday was awesome – I loved it – and I'll take away lots of good memories.”