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Jensen on top???? hahaha, only if displaces Sutil as Lewis's "friend"





Naw, Merc choose kimi, cause Kimi wanted to drive for the Merc, not necessarily the mac.....

Now kimi will be at Brawn, so I think.

maybe button was more scared of kimi or rosberg showing up at brawn, then being Lewis's lapdog??

I don't believe a word of what Fry said, he's just trying to pre-empt any criticism of dumping WDC from the British media.

Could this post be any more full of bias towards Jenson Button?

What would you expect from the interview with Fry or the Macca statement? "Jenson is coming because he loves money and we gave him plenty" ????

You think this is a guy desperately looking for challenges like he has nothing else to accomplish or prove? I could understand Michael Schumacher leaving Ferrari and signing for let's say Williams for "the challenge".. but before looking for challenges, what about Jenson looking for winning a race again? or even better.. defending succesfully his title? Arent those enough challenges??? Do you think he would drop his WCC team for the challenge only??? That is BS and you have to be naive

Jenson was offered the money in a top team.. he took it.. it has nothing to do with balls...

A loyal driver? Yeah, loyalty is something you either have or you don't.. are you going to tell me Schumaher is a honest driver because 1994 and 1997 are a long time ago? When Jenson was involved in a tough situation.. he proved not to be loyal.. and now he proves once more.. because he has enough money to say "Damn it, I am defending my title for the team that kept me in Formula 1 after Honda pulled away even if I dont make more money"

He didnt earn the Macca drive... It seems Barrichello and Raikkonen were thought before of him.. and Kovalanein had it.. so what is the big merit??

This reeks of horse shit, Fry. Smells really bad to me.

(BTW, I will have you all know that the weasel is a bold, noble creature )

Huh? BRAWN offered him more money, at least according to Nick Fry. It seems that Button preferred the independent team. After all, he understands that manufacturers should just supply engines.

Everybody expects Hamilton to beat Jenson.
Which makes Jenson the underdog by default...Sound like a very comfortable feeling for Jenson.
So absolutely nothing ballsy about Jenson's move.

Whereas, had he stayed at Brawn, he would have been expected to lead (again). And by his own admittance, it got to him badly in the latter part of the year.

And if you couple to this that he believes McLaren will be the faster car than Mercedes next year, his motives are totally clear to me.
A ballsy move? Absolutely not.

It smells very much of the same stuff Alonso smelt in 05 when he told Ron after the Brazilian GP that he'd like to drive for Mclaren because he was impressed at how they developed ;-)!

Like Dalton007 says it wasn't about the money, both Fry and Whitmarsh say it wasn't and that the McLaren deal is probably a worse one money wise. I think that something must have happened with his relationship to Brawn/Merc for Button to consider moving elsewhere. My guess is that the issue lied with Mercedes, they made Button feel that for whatever reason he wasn't really wanted by the new paymasters of what had been 'his' team.

From what I can tell, with Button and McLaren is that McLaren didn't realise at first that Button was going to be available. Everyone thought that Button re-signing for Brawn was a done deal. Once it became obvious that it not being a done deal was a real possibility he became McLaren's main priority. OK, if Raikkonen had agreed terms then he would have been signed before Button became "available", but it's obvious that his demands did not make him an attractive prospect to the team. Also I guess we'll never know how big a target he would have been for McLaren if it was realised he wasn't definitely going to Brawn earlier.

something doesn't add up i think it was simply the contract on offer from Brawn had things in it which JB wasn't happy with (maybe 1 year option for 2011?? which potentially he be without a drive?) i am sure he would of stayed, in addition the chances are high mclaren will be better as well.

One thing is for sure JB has the guts and balls to do this i cnt see any other top driver who would and we have to applaud him for taking on lewis in HIS team. its a career make or breaker damn!! i wouldn't of done it!

Guts and balls? he was panicking on not getting enough money out of Brawn, and goddard, the prick he is, took his hands, and they went over to McLaren for a nice and freindly visit. Ross had a brainfart at once when he came to know about it, and took it as a breach of contract, or if you like it more that way: he just got fed up with the stalling of Goddard and Button, and withdrew a contract offer of 12 m/year for the next 2 seasons. If you do the maths, then you see that Button's fantastic manager has made a deal that effectively cost Button 4 million in 2 years. Here is your balls mate. Maybe he has big ones, but he sure carries his brain there also.

No, but it´s all in the timing isn´t it? If they rush out and confirm Heidfeld the day after Jenson joins Mac, it will be pretty obvious what went down. I´d say it will take a few weeks, with Merc throwing a few more names into the hat, before they finally announce quick Nick as their other driver.
I could be way off target here, but somehow I don´t think so.
It´s all about perceptions, isn´t it.

Id say it was a few million sour things

I think Merc are not willing to shell out much for the drivers? So he had to stick to more or less the same pay package, while Ross has commented that JB can make money thro sponsors. It definitely soured, and he is a veteran.

People trash Schumi for not driving with a more competitive teamate, but Jenson is trying to be brave moving to Mclaren.

We'll have to wait a while until the full truth comes out. Everything until then is pure conjecture, because Button hasn't given his definitive side of the story and have Brawn respond. Jumping ship from Brawn to Mclaren does seem strange. But at approaching 30, getting a 3 year contract with a top team, is not to be sniffed at. My guess is Brawn was only offering a 1 year deal, with a further 1 year option on their side.

They gave him a bloody drive this year ffs. Jense would be on his butt watching RedBull dominance if not for Ross and co saving the whole thing. Gave him a WDC winning car no less either. I'd be pretty damn grateful personally, and for a while he was. Look as the start of the year everyone were all simply grateful just to be on the grid, let alone winning. How quickly things change.

It will certainly be interesting to hear what Button has to say when he gives an interview as opposed to his quote in the McLaren press release.

In the press release he didn't have anything bad to say about BrawnGP, and it will be intriguing to see if anything changes on that front after things like the interview with Nick Fry.

Talk about conjecture.

?? how come?

It's a good moment to make the change. Maybe next year after being beat by Rosberg it could be harder to find a winning car. Winning with Brawn was one off, next year could have become harder and he couldn't do much about it.

It wasn't 12m it was 8m plus bonus. At Mac he will get 6m plus bonus, which in the past has been around 1m/win. If nothing else this shows that salary was not the issue. I'm quite shocked that Brawn should consider an out of contract driver discussing oppurtunities with another team a breach of contract.

Yup I totally agree on this. I read the article on autosport as well. I kinda support the way Button operates. Going for new and NOT being afraid of expressing his hi idea, at least he does this pretty well.


I back him up for the coming season. He is a good cap, and good racer.

Nothing to do with balls, but with brains, or the lack of it. Button made a career choice mistake. Not his first one.

On this, I have to agree with you.

Well he still have become WDC, lots of those who made the right call have not got the WDC, like DC. Like Montoya, like Gilles... What is interesting is the exp Button id just waives off the emotional black anger of Fry in one go. That is cutting.

Wonder what you would be saying now if the news was that he had an offer from Mac and turned it down. I suspect it would be something along the lines of him being a coward.

I agree that Jenson has big balls. All the talk of Lewis being better and Jenson being lucky, (despite Lewis having the best car for his first 2 years in F1), has made Jenson think "**** it, I am WDC, now I will beat Lewis in his own back yard.

Jenson won 6 races and had a race to spare in a much more competitive field than Lewis who only won 4 races and the WDC on the last corner of the last race when only 2 teams had a chance.

Can he do it? I don't know.

McLaren have historically favoured their own, so Jenson will have to work double hard to beat his teammate, and his team.

The Mac deal is 3 years, from what I understood the Brawn deal was 1 year plus an option on the 2nd. Jenson split for money. Fry is full of shit, they may have offered the same money for a one year contract and MAYBE took up the option? Not much stability in that. I don't fault Jenson for leaving for better money, but let's not call it big balls or a "new challenge" What a load of crap that is. Guy spends 7 years in the team, buys himself out of a Williams contract to stay, wins a championship and then jumps ship to a team where he will be new and placed with a teamate that will wipe the floor with him and this wasn't for money? Why would any driver leave a chamipnship winning team, where you are the poster child of the team with a new fairly unproven teamate that you could compete well against for a team where you are filler to backstop the superstar?

I do not fault him at all for leaving. I think Brawn were assholes to him, if only for the simple fact that he took a massive paycut last year, the money he was asking for was basically payback for last season and a bit of a raise for being WDC. But to say it's for a new challenge is moronic. I like JB but he is going to get spanked hard by Lewis ( I'm no Hamilton fan) but I'm sure he doesn't mind a tanned bottom if the price is right.

At first I thought Button had made a big mistake but perhaps things weren't as rosy at Brawn as we'd been led to believe... Mercedes have long wanted a German champion of their own after missing out on Schumacher who walked away from them when he arrived in F1.

If Rosberg was the favoured driver of Mercedes, Button would be marginalised and as WDC perhaps felt that he had earned better treatment.

Brawn certainly bungled the contract negotiations in a very embarrassing way. All those images of Button with trophies are going to be out of date and a source of embarrassment to them as they can't 'sell the brand' now.

I think that Hamilton will get the better of Button over a season but I actually expect it to be pretty close as Button is a very strong racer.

I personally don't think he did the right thing. I would have waited and try to earn another WDC with Mercedes and then move on to challenge Lewis.. However I do respect and applaud his decision..

Schumacher take note..In order to be considered a true great you want to have at least beaten one WDC or another top caliber driver in your career.. Button is trying to do this.. good luck, he is going to need it..

For the life of me, I don't see the bravery in going to McLaren with a car everybody (including Button) expects to be the class of the field, with another driver many see as the best of the current crop.

NO ONE will expect Button to beat Hamilton over the course of the season, therefore it's a pretty comfortable situation for Jenson, with less pressure than he had this year.

That's all very well, but that would likely mean the Mac seat would be unavailable for 2-3 years. To challange Lewis he had to make the move now.

I like the way the excuses are coming out already. If it was the other way round, do you think Hamilton would be said to be facing a herculean task to take on Jenson at Merc? Of course, I forgot, we're talking about evil McLaren...

Is it the same deal for Alonso at Ferrari? Does he face an absolutely almighty task to beat their "favoured" son?

If it were the other way round, I would say Lewis would have the same sort of task on his hands.

Button would likely beat Lewis at Brawn, just as Lewis will likely beat Jenson at McLaren.

The point is that Button has the nuts to do what Nico wouldn't. Namely to take on Lewis on home ground.

(He had the chance in 2008, but refused.).

Button clearly has nothing to lose, now that he is WDC. He now wants to silence the naysayers.

If he is beaten, he is still WDC. If he beats Lewis, he finally shuts up the people saying he isn't a match for Lewis.

Respect to Jenson for taking on the challenge.

With regards to Alonso, yes, Massa is Ferrari's favoured son, who beat Kimi.

Much like 2005, when he signed for McLaren expecting Kimi as a teammate.

MS ran scared of Kimi. Kimi ran scared of Alonso. Rosberg refused to take on Lewis.

Jenson has the biggest balls in F1.

lol when you put it like that...

Button has a good reputation now. If Hamilton dominates him then hes lost his reputation forever plus the chance to win another WDC if the mercedes is dominant in 2010. Its a lose lose situation for Button. Moving to Mclaren was only a smart move if he was capable of beating Hamilton.

Aye to that it's gonna be good. Lol at "gay drivers" being shut down...

Well, I actually don't think that Hamilton will dominate him. Unlike Heikki, I think he will be closer to Hamilton. And if the McLaren is faster than the Mercedes, that will be enough to save his reputation. So in that sense, it's a smart move.

He didn't sign expecting Kimi as it was already known Kimi was Ferrari bound. If anything he would have expected to be partnered with JPM.

kimi signed with ferrari with MS as his team mate at that time.if courage has anything to do with it,then i think taking on MS at ferrari gets the top prize.

At the end of 2005 the underlined part wasn't known by any stretch of the imagination.

Oh I think it was. Mac had KR and JPM already under contract, why would they be signing Alonso unless someone was on their way out?

The first thought from 9 out of 10 people would have been that Montoya was on his way out because he wasn't quite matching the expectations. KR was still considered very much a McLaren man like Hamilton is now. There is also a quote somewhere from Montoya who recalls Räikönnen was pretty pissed at the announcement of Alonso for 2007. Why would he be if he was already off to Ferrari at that point? Finally, McLaren according to their own words tried deep into 2006 to prolong the contract with Kimi

All in all it's pretty obvious that Alonso had no clue nor did he apparently care who would be his teammate at McLaren in 2007 (something I'm sure he regretted later ). But by all accounts back in 2005 he must have expected it to be Räikönnen at the likeliest (sp?).

I think this must be Kimi's greatest impact in F1, scaring MS into retirement.

Button has done this the wrong way. He should have been more open with Ross in the negotiations.

Brawn offered him more money then McLaren and in all likelyhood another shot at the title. He would been on top of Rosberg.

Now he has to face Hamilton in Hamilton's team...

Ross is right to question Button's Loyalty and judgement. Hamilton is going to blitz smoothy Button.

so raikkonen was scared of facing alonso in a mclaren and ran to face MS in a ferrari?? do u see any sense exuding out of that?

raikkonen's deal was done before alonso signed that mclaren deal.the robertsons were in contact with todt way before schumi presumably decided on retiring.

theres one thing that even the most blatant of bashers would admit ...and that is raikkonen doesnt really give any thoughts to who's driving alongside him.

Yes, Kimi is like that and of other drivers on grid now
I'd say that Nico Sutil are like that (and maybe Kamui).

The rumours that KR had already signed an agreement and was off to Ferrari were pretty strong back then, so I think the people involved knew pretty much what the situation would be. I don't think that actually played a part in FA's decision though, and believe he would have joined regardless of who the 2nd driver was.

They're just rumours, maybe Alonso doesn't believe rumours. On the other hand, Alonso was signed in 2005 is a fact.

As a long term Button fan I am delighted he is doing what is likely to give him his best chance of success however if they are now pitching themselves as a great British pairing why not be the first drivers/cars since Mansell to wear their BRDC badge with pride?

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