McLaren plays down Dennis’ Suzuka absence

McLaren insists there is nothing controversial about Ron Dennis’ absence from Suzuka so far this weekend.

Amid reports of ’crisis talks’ having been held at Honda’s Sakura headquarters earlier this week, rumours are now swirling not only about Jenson Button’s future at the struggling team, but also Fernando Alonso’s.

"Ron Dennis is in Japan but not at the track," former long-time McLaren driver David Coulthard revealed on Saturday.

"What is going on at McLaren?"

A McLaren spokesman has at least laid to rest the rumours about Dennis’ odd absence from Suzuka, explaining that the 68-year-old team supremo is simply unwell.

"Ron has a virus," the spokesman told us, "and has been confined to bed in a Tokyo hotel room for the past two days, but he intends to come to the circuit on race day."

As for Button’s future at McLaren, Coulthard - who is known to be close to the fellow Briton - suggested he thinks rumours the 35-year-old has definitely decided to quit are wrong.

"I don’t know the intimate details of his contract and all the options," the Scot told the Telegraph newspaper, "but all that can be worked out if both parties are willing."