The renaissance of Jenson Button
Jenson always saw light at the end of the tunnel. But, as the man who's observed his entire career in close quarters writes for F1 Racing, the seeds for Button's astonishing year were sown during his dark days at the back of the grid.
By James Allen
"It's easier to enjoy Jenson's success than it was with Lewis." I've heard this a lot while researching this piece. Among the public and in the F1 paddock, the feeling is that Jenson Button deserves his success and wears it in a more attractive way than his countryman did last year. A lot of that is down to maturity. He's been seasoned by his years in a poor car, unable to make an impression, unable to show people that actually he had far more ability than any of them realised.
Lewis is the opposite, but he hasn't won as many friends as a result. Now he is going through that maturing process and, as Jenson's example shows, this is the making of both the driver and the man.
I've covered all of Jenson Button's career, witnessed the arc - with its few ups and many downs - leading to this extraordinary moment. Button is dominating the world championship, just the way he and his dad always intended. Barring some catastrophe, he will be champion in a few months. And he will deserve it. But did you see this coming? Can anyone truly say that they believed that Jenson was this good?
My mind goes back to my first proper encounter with him, in Macau in 1999. He was a 19-year-old Formula 3 driver then with a few pimples on his face and fuzzy hair. We found ourselves in the Italian restaurant in the Macau pit building, where all the greats have slurped spaghetti, dreaming of F1 stardom. It was lunchtime on practice day: Jenson was with his dad; his then manager, David Robertson; and his trainer. They wanted to know about F1: how it worked, who did what, the ins and outs.
I'd been working on a book with Michael Schumacher and had spent a fair bit of time with him and Ross Brawn, who was then the technical director of Ferrari. I told Jenson that. Ross created the right environment for Schumacher to thrive and Schumacher kept it on the limit the whole time. He didn't question Ross's demands; he just did it.
I'm reminded of that today when I see Button shutting out the opposition with a perfectly timed pole lap, making an aggressive pass at the start to set himself up for victory, making things happen.
Because the truth is that for most of his F1 career, Button has not been able to make things happen. In fact, quite the reverse. And that has been a source of great frustration to him and to the man who has always believed in him the most, his father John.
It's now becoming clear that Jenson is a far better driver than anyone, apart from Jenson and John, realised. Even allowing for the car advantage, he's driving like a god and continually surprising people. Don't take my word for it, read Ross Brawn's statement over the Turkey weekend: "They told me Jenson was good," he said, "but I didn't realise he was this good."
READ THE FULL ARTICLE IN THE JULY 2009 ISSUE OF F1 RACING
