INQUIRER Sports

ABU DHABI - Newly-acclaimed world drivers champion Jenson Button was purring over the new Yas Marina circuit that will host the season-ending and inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday.

After an opening day of two free practice sessions Friday, Button's view echoed those of most of the drivers here after they enjoyed the challenge of driving on the spectacular one billion euros track.

But Button's joy was not enough to lift him to the top of the standings at the end of the day as the two McLaren Mercedes cars led by Finn Heikki Kovalalaien and Britain's Lewis Hamilton set the pace.

Kovalainen clocked a best time of one minute and 41.307 seconds in the second session to outpace McLaren team-mate and former champion Hamilton by nearly two-tenths of a second.

Button was third, but said: "That was just amazing. This is a fantastic track, really good to drive on and I enjoyed it.

"When you look at the layout, it doesn't seem that exciting, but when you actually drive on it, it's fantastic.

"It has a bit of everything, with high and low-speed corners, positive and negative camber and the walls are pretty close to you most of the way round, too.

"It was great. I think we had a good first day's practice here with just a few balance issues to work on overnight so I am feeling pretty positive now."

Kovalainen was equally upbeat about his performance and the new circuit.

"The whole day was pretty good," said Kovalainen.

"We'd already done good work in Woking preparing for this circuit, so we had a good balance right from the start this morning. However, we had a brake issue during first practice, which we couldn't sort out during the session.

"So, this afternoon, we got it sorted and were able to improve considerably, with both tires working well. The circuit is cool. It's very smooth with good grip and the kerbs are nice.

"Turns two and three are not easy flat, but, with the good balance of the car, they're fun. And on the straight, KERS gives us an additional benefit. We can use it for maximum performance and it's worth three-and-a-half to four tenths.

"The light is no problem with our slightly tinted tear-off visors, which we could remove once the sun had set."

Hamilton, quickest in the morning, was confident that McLaren will be competitive.

"It looks like we might be quite competitive here," he said.

"Our long runs appear to be good, the car feels great and the track is great. It's quite interesting coming from daylight into night-time -- you don't notice the difference through the twilight so it’s amazing.

"I think that they've done an incredible job. It's a really nice circuit to drive - there are a lot of technical corners, where braking stability is important.

"It's a great track and I really enjoy driving it. The only bit I don't like is the tunnel - but it's a challenge."

German Sebastian Vettel, who was fourth in the second session, said he, too, was in good shape and felt determined to confirm himself as runner-up in the drivers' championship.

"So, that was the last Friday practice of this year!" said Vettel.

"It's also pretty special to go under a hotel. Performance-wise, we're looking quite good. We didn't know what to expect around here, but it seems as though we're quite competitive.

"Even though it's a new track, it was a normal Friday practice and we were testing which tire works best."

Australian Mark Webber, his team-mate, wound up seventh and he said: "The track's pretty good. It's not Spa-Francorchamps, but it's also not Bahrain.

"So, it's not bad. There was a difference in clarity between driving in the afternoon for P1 and in the early evening during P2 - it's a different atmosphere when the lights are on, but we're used to that now from Singapore."