In what has been seen by many in the business as the ‘dream team‘, McLaren have announced their new driver for the GP 2010 season – none other than Mr Jenson Button. So, what’s the story? Well, after Mercedes bought a controlling stake in Brawn, things got a lot more complicated. Talk from insiders very quickly became of the nature of Mercedes seeking an all-German team, though this seems unlikely when they’ve kept Ross Brawn in the ‘driving seat’ as it were.
Button is well known for seeking big pay packets and he sought to re-negotiate after winning the World Championship. Again, talking about rumours, they were that he was simply asking for too much and discussions repeatedly stalled. Then, a couple of weeks ago, we started hearing rumours that Lewis Hamilton, a former World Champion, would be joined by Jenson Button, the 2009 World Champion. McLaren have the buying power, that we know. They also have the ability to design a car that’s more than capable of winning.
This brings us to where we are now. The announcement. It’s almost world shattering and amazing at the same time. Where does it really leave Button though? Well, that’s a tough one. McLaren ‘is’ Hamilton’s team. The links with him, his family and the team are well known. He’s been their star driver, coming second in his first season then first in his second. There’ll be a lot of mutual respect in the garage between him and the engineers. Button, well he’s not exactly an unknown quantity, but will he accept the very different atmosphere from Brawn GP?
The other question that springs to mind is how the car is developed. Button has a superbly smooth driving style. He rarely looks ruffled and will manage a very low mistake ratio even when pushing the car very hard. Hamilton, to my mind an equally good driver, is worlds away in terms of style. You can see how he wrestles the car – he uses a much more physical touch. It’ll be amazing to see how they do when given the same quality equipment.
Ultimately, history has dictated that it’s not always great to have two World Champions in the same team, let alone of the same nationality. However, if there is little in the way of in-fighting then McLaren arguably have the two best drivers on the great. Give them the right wheels and we could be looking at the 2010 Manufacturer and Driver Championship winners. Though which driver it’ll be taking that title is anyone’s guess…
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