Kovalainen intends to improve step by step

Despite the good performances offered in the first weekend of the year in Australia, Heikki Kovalainen said he still intends to improve step by step in his start to the season with McLaren. "I think I will try to improve step by step, without making the mistakes of last year" declared the Finn in Malaysia.

"I know that I can improve a lot and I know that I will be stronger as the season continues, I have no doubts about that. And I will try to have a continuous growth trend. It's certainly not just a question of lapping but the car is performing well and I feel comfortable with the car when I push harder. And if the car doesn't respond as I expect I simply adopt the best possible pace at that moment."

Kovalainen, who made a colorless debut in Melbourne last year, finished this year's Australian GP in fifth place after losing fourth place to Fernando Alonso after accidentally pressing the speed limiter button '. "I think the result and the race were definitely different compared to last year's race with Renault. I feel that this team supports me 100% and I have the same chances as Lewis. Regarding my mistake, the team was quite calm. It's positive. The team knows my potential, we'll try again this weekend. I still need to refine the set-up of the car and give better feedback to the engineers. I'm sure I can push more under braking and in the corners lens".