NickBes

Should be interesting next year then

Press Release - VODAFONE McLAREN MERCEDES SIGNS REIGNING WORLD CHAMPION JENSON BUTTON TO MULTI-YEAR DEAL

WRX_Dazza

yes... ZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Milamber

iTrader: (2)

Lewis Hamilton
2008 Formula 1 World Champion
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes car #2
“It’s fantastic news that Jenson has decided to join Vodafone McLaren Mercedes – and I’m looking forward to working with him"


[Cough]Bull$hit[/Cough]

TomR555

iTrader: (1)

all gona end in a bad move in my opinion

scooby seb

iTrader: (1)

nnnnnnnnooooooooooooooooooo whats he doing!!!!!!!!! surpose the pull of money got the better of him!!! he will regret it in the end?? lewis will always be number one driver there

TomR555

iTrader: (1)

Button always seems to make strange team choices

Moley

iTrader: (9)

The McLaren will probably be the better car in 2010, so he'd have a better chance of retaining the championship with them IMO.

Not sure money came into it too much. He already has more money than he could ever spend, so i'd like to believe he has gone to the team that will give him the best car in 2010 (Red Bull already had their drivers sorted, so McLaren had to do)

Phil

Greedy little bugger

I hope Lewis will wipe the floor with him

GeorgeM

not sure he's being that greedy, not earning as much as he did at Honda last year. He dropped to 3.5 million this year to help get Brawn going.

His driving style is completely different to Lewis, so if he can get things right with his mechanics it could be very interesting. He will certainly have a tough time settling into a team set up for Lewis though.

I admit I do like to see Jenson do well, may just give Lewis a bit of a shock,- he will certainly do better than Heikki

GeorgeM

GeorgeM

not sure he's being that greedy, not earning as much as he did at Honda last year. He dropped to 3.5 million this year to help get Brawn going.

His driving style is completely different to Lewis, so if he can get things right with his mechanics it could be very interesting. He will certainly have a tough time settling into a team set up for Lewis though.

I admit I do like to see Jenson do well, may just give Lewis a bit of a shock,- he will certainly do better than Heikki

GeorgeM

stuart n

The length McLaren will go to to make sure they have the number 1 plate on their car

Cornelius

iTrader: (2)

What a kick in the ***** for Ross Brawn!

Hope the Brawn team wins the championship and constructors next season!

Can see it now, Jenson will be forced to take a "back seat" (so to speak) for Hamilton!! Tom, you're bang on - it WILL end in tears!

shamone

iTrader: (1)

Two top drawer British drivers on the same team is good to see..... they'd BETTER have a good car next season!!

Hope red bull keep up the pressure next year and Ferrari manage to get things working. Could turn out quite interesting (for 21st century F1 anyway)

Phil

He didn't have a drive until Brawn bought the team so something is better than nothing
Greed this year plain and simple I AM WORLD CHAMP PAY ME LOADS

yellowvanman

Oh you cynic.

Personally I think Jenson has been left with some very awkward choices.

Stay with a team that punched way above its weight this year, knowing that next years car has been developed with a fraction of the budget and staff as the one you won in this year. And having seen the 'big' teams catch and pass the performance of your car.

Jenson has shown a lot of loyalty to Honda / Brawn, but they efforts to sign him appeared half hearted, maybe as they knew the sale to Merc was immanent and they had already signed 1 driver.

I suspect Merc would be a long term good bet, but he has already waited for that to happen with Honda.

Maclaren clearly showed they had sussed the new reg towards the end of the year, and you can guarantee that with those lessons learnt next years car will be good.
But the team is now defo lewis's team. Lewis is also very quick. And possibly worse is that the car will have been developed with Lewis's feedback and therefore preferences in mind. Great for Lewis, but his more aggressive oversteery style, is the complete opposite to Jensons smooth Prost like style. Can one car be set up for both styles, I don't know.

In his position, **** knows what I would have done.

Phil

Milamber

iTrader: (2)

He was asking for less then 5 other drivers on the grid

At the end of the day HE IS WORLD CHAMP PAY HIM LOADS.

At least he didn't leave it to the last corner of the last lap of the last race like Lewis.

Phil

Jenson Fan Club Member

Don't get me wrong I am not anti Jenson and I would probably done the same thing
its just his Team movements never seem to run smoothly

Adidas

Damn cheaper then if Kimi would have signed for Mclaren, which is exactly why he's driving for such a great team next year. Oh hang on a minute.......

yellowvanman

Indeed his early moves where mismanaged at the very least. But he has changed management and remained loyal to effectively 1 team from 2003 BAR/Honda/Brawn.

At least he has ended up with a decent drive after winning the championship unlike Mansell / Hill.

Cornelius

iTrader: (2)

If anything, it's going to show who's the better driver, they will be in virtually the same cars, so as already mentioned, what style will be best, Hamilton's aggressiveness or Button's smoothness?

I just hope team orders aren't going to be an issue

Milamber

iTrader: (2)

I'm never one to say "told you so" but apparently he signed for McLaren for £6 million per year whereas Brawn had offered him £8 million. So he's taking a pay cut

Phil

Milamber

iTrader: (2)

yellowvanman

Indeed, I have just read the following article, I had forgotten that refueling is banned for next year.

A BAN on refuelling in Formula One next season is likely to favour Jenson Button over new teammate Lewis Hamilton.
Most F1 paddock observers believe Button’s move to McLaren is unwise and that he will be trounced by Hamilton, but the rule change has implications that suit Button’s driving style and work against Hamilton’s.
The pair have different techniques. Button derives his speed from minimising his steering inputs and carrying as much momentum into corners as possible, maximising the car’s grip, upsetting it as little as possible. It progressively loads up the tyres through the corner, taking less energy out of them, letting them perform well for longer. It also demands a supremely stable car. Any unpredictability, especially from the rear of the car, will prevent him being able to commit to the high entry speeds that are so crucial to making his style work effectively.
Hamilton almost relishes some instability. He tends to use a measure of rear-end slide to hurry the car’s direction change. It requires far more steering correction, which tends to bring a loss of momentum. Hamilton’s uncanny balance lets him have the car on a knife edge and he usually gains more time from the quicker direction change than he loses from the loss of momentum. It is particularly effective into slow and medium speed corners, where the car’s aerodynamic downforce isn’t pressing the tyres so hard into the surface.
However, it introduces spikier loadings into the rear tyres, with sudden cornering peaks followed by troughs as the adhesion limit is exceeded. This takes the energy out of those tyres quicker than Button’s smoother style.
For 2010, refuelling is banned for the first time in 17 seasons. Enough fuel for the race — typically around 150kg — will cost up to five seconds a lap. It also imposes potentially damaging loads on the tyres.
Although pit stops to change tyres are still permitted, a stop typically costs about 25-30 seconds. A driver who can make his tyres last longer will be much faster in the later stages of the race. If he can manage not to lose too much time he should be in good shape to overhaul the more aggressive driver later. Hamilton’s style also demands a car with a very grippy front so the rear will pivot around the front to give the rear slide that helps his direction change. For 2010 the regulations have reduced the width of the front tyres and thereby their grip, so potentially further compromising his natural style. Button’s less abrupt style equalises the loadings between front and rear more effectively and so he should be less affected by this change.
The reduced front tyre size also puts a greater proportion of the car’s total grip at the rear, so further taming the sort of rear instability that Button finds difficult to deal with. There are yet more advantages to Button’s style; the smoother trajectory enables him to be less busy with the throttle pedal, improving his fuel economy. If he’s using less fuel, his car can be lighter at the start than Hamilton’s. It won’t be by much but at this level every tiny difference can be critical.
The mercurial Hamilton is adaptable as well as intelligent enough to understand the revised regulations — but the changes play towards the reigning champion’s strengths.