Driver profile: Jenson Button

At his best, Jenson Button is close to untouchable. When the car does what he wants, or in changing conditions where an exquisite feel for the grip available is required, he dances on a limit beyond reach of pretty much anyone else.

Button's stats and facts

  • Team: McLaren
  • Team-mate: Sergio Perez
  • Previous teams: Williams, Benetton, Renault, BAR, Honda, Brawn
  • Nationality: English
  • Born: 19/01/1980, Frome
  • Grand Prix debut: Australia 2000
  • World titles: 1 (2009)

But Formula 1 cars are very rarely perfectly set up for their drivers and if he does not like what his mount is doing, Button can fall into mediocrity.

In extreme examples of such situations, Button has a tendency to disappear off the radar completely.

His problem in building a consistent title challenge is that the chances of his always being happy with the car over 19 races are slim indeed.

But any man who can out-score Lewis Hamilton in the same car, as happened in 2011, has to be taken very seriously indeed as a competitor.