Team Leader Button?

[keysersoze]

I'll start off by saying JB surprised me his first year at McLaren. I didn't think he had either the talent or the mental strength to challenge Lewis--few of us did--and he clearly proved many of us wrong. Since then, even though Hamilton has proven to be quicker, Jenson has proven time and again that he's an elite driver.

But I'm annoyed by his latest comments about "molding the team" around him and being "team leader."

Sure, Sergio is new and young, but JB seems to have ignored McLaren's philosophy that no driver gets preferential treatment and, until one is mathematically eliminated from the championship, the other won't be asked to move over during a race.

If I was a crew member, I'd be thinking "You weren't number 1 when Lewis was here. We produced two equal cars and let you both get on with it. We didn't mold the team around him. And he still beat you. Why would we mold the team around you now--all of a sudden change our long-standing philosophy--for a driver who was clearly slower than the one who left? What's all this 'I' business? What happened to 'We'?

[Wasted Talent]

Well maybe I was in the minority but I didn't think that JB would have been dominated by Hamilton, and history shows that he hasn't.

They are different drivers - different styles, different personalities. It is no secret that JB likes his car to drive in a specific way, a different one to LH, and it will take tme to build that in to the design of the car.

McLaren aren't idiots and whilst they may have been surprised and disappointed by Lewis opting for Mercedes I am sure they are delighted to still have JB driving for them.

I wouldn't read anything at all in to supposed quotes of "I" as opposed to the team (I wouldn't believe anything in the press without seeing the full interview in context), despite being immensely competitive JB is a consumate team player, but it is only natural that after three seasons at McLaren, and being a former champion, that he should be seen as "team-leader" when compared to Sergio Perez who, whatever his talents, is a relative rookie with a lot still to learn.

It will be fascinating to see how they develop in 2013, as will the battle within Mercedes, again I don't see it as a foregone conclusion that Rosberg will be the second driver....

WT

[zako85]

During the 2011/2012 break I would think JB should make a great lead driver at McLaren, but now I am not so sure. This year, he spent too many races racing anonymously somewhere in the mid pack, struggling with the "balance", tires, and, whatnot. Not to mention, he lacks the qualifying speed compared to LH. Another year like that, and I bet McLaren will start thinking of replacing him. It would be interesting what happens if Sergio performs equal or better. I really wonder what's going to happen to McLaren next year.

[Bagwan]

To make a comment that they will now mold the team around him would suggests that he believed that this was the case with Lewis , I believe .
It seems like he has put his struggles to come to grips with the car directly on the fact it was designed for Lewis .

Since Lewis signed for another team , they have focussed on Jensen's style , and he's clearly looking forward to it suiting him more .
It must be hard to put up with all the agro when the other guy is at the sharp end , and you're not .

This next year will be a real test for Jensen , as he must prove he is that team leader , with a car designed for his strengths .
He will be expected to shine .

[fandango]

Irony is waiting to strike, rubbing its palms stage left just behind the curtain.
Much is being made of Hamilton's big mistake going to Merc. They haven't scored a point since he signed, etc. Maybe it's because they're working on next year's car. I seem to remember something like that happening in recent history - oh yeah it was when Button himself became champion!
And the last time McLaren had a driver who thought he'd be automatically top dog (2007) look how that turned out.

So, yes, I agree with post #1 here. Button is setting himself up for a fall...

[N4D13]

To be honest, hardly would I expect to see Pérez beat Button in his first season at McLaren. And, well, even though Macca don't usually have a #1 and a #2 driver, if there's a noticeable difference between both drivers, Jenson would be the de facto team leader. I'd also expect McLaren to build this year's car around Jenson, which means that he will surely find it easier to drive and set up than this year's.

And, well, one would expect Merc to improve their performance, but you need to keep in mind that there's no such a big difference between 2012 and 2013 where rules are concerned. Now, 2014 - that's the real deal. Even though Mercedes will have probably been working on the next year's car for a longer time than their challengers, it would be a huge surprise to see them having a winner car out of the box. And even if they started the year with a quick car, will they be able to keep it up? Rosberg's China victory was pretty much the beginning of Merc's downfall in 2012.

[Wasted Talent]

To make a comment that they will now mold the team around him would suggests that he believed that this was the case with Lewis , I believe .
It seems like he has put his struggles to come to grips with the car directly on the fact it was designed for Lewis .

Since Lewis signed for another team , they have focussed on Jensen's style , and he's clearly looking forward to it suiting him more .
It must be hard to put up with all the agro when the other guy is at the sharp end , and you're not .

This next year will be a real test for Jensen , as he must prove he is that team leader , with a car designed for his strengths .
He will be expected to shine .

...Jenson.........not Jensen, they made the Interceptor.....

WT

[Tazio]

I've read these articles they are right next to the ones that say: Button: I Would Like To Be Alonso (http://www.formula1fancast.com/2012/12/formula-1-news/button-i-would-like-to-be-alonsos-team-mate?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Formula1Fancast+%28Formula+1+ FanCast%29)
Honestly it just sounds like small talk to me. I wish Button all the best next season, and perhaps he will be a stabilizing influence there. However these kinds of comments are pretty typical of a veteran incumbent with a young driver coming in as a teammate to make, which IMHO is a backhanded way to say he and Hamilton are interchangeable in terms of value to the team (talent) but he is not. This may also be a little ground work to take the pressure off Checo. IMO I think McLaren are interested in providing a challenger that Perez, and Button can both be fast in. We know who call the shots at McLaren, so does JB. However there is nothing wrong with him suggesting he is the team leader, (whatever that means) Perez certainly can't claim that mantle.

[N. Jones]

I'll start off by saying JB surprised me his first year at McLaren. I didn't think he had either the talent or the mental strength to challenge Lewis--few of us did--and he clearly proved many of us wrong. Since then, even though Hamilton has proven to be quicker, Jenson has proven time and again that he's an elite driver.

But I'm annoyed by his latest comments about "molding the team" around him and being "team leader."

Sure, Sergio is new and young, but JB seems to have ignored McLaren's philosophy that no driver gets preferential treatment and, until one is mathematically eliminated from the championship, the other won't be asked to move over during a race.

If I was a crew member, I'd be thinking "You weren't number 1 when Lewis was here. We produced two equal cars and let you both get on with it. We didn't mold the team around him. And he still beat you. Why would we mold the team around you now--all of a sudden change our long-standing philosophy--for a driver who was clearly slower than the one who left? What's all this 'I' business? What happened to 'We'?

I think Button should remember how JV treated him before he talks like this again.

[F1boat]

I think that Jenson can be a team leader. If the car is suited to his style of driving he can do well. We saw it in 2009, we saw it last year as well. However, he must beat Perez. And this may not be as easy as it sounds. If he doesn't beat Perez convincingly, this will be the beginning of the end of his career.

[CaptainRaiden]

Well maybe I was in the minority but I didn't think that JB would have been dominated by Hamilton, and history shows that he hasn't.

Surely you're not taking 2012 into consideration?

Because the F1 that I saw this year showed Button getting absolutely thrashed by Hamilton in the majority of races.

As for the topic, I think Button is being clever. He is marking his territory, so to speak, trying to get the team behind him as the hotheaded "ultra talented rough diamond" (Whitmarsh's quote, not mine) arrives next year. If Mclaren make a car which doesn't give JB the "grip" or the "heat" that his driving style needs, I'm afraid he might be in danger of being outperformed by a newbie.

[Wasted Talent]

Surely you're not taking 2012 into consideration?

Because the F1 that I saw this year showed Button getting absolutely thrashed by Hamilton in the majority of races.

As for the topic, I think Button is being clever. He is marking his territory, so to speak, trying to get the team behind him as the hotheaded "ultra talented rough diamond" (Whitmarsh's quote, not mine) arrives next year. If Mclaren make a car which doesn't give JB the "grip" or the "heat" that his driving style needs, I'm afraid he might be in danger of being outperformed by a newbie.

I am taking the three seasons they were together as a whole, and stick by my comment, given that Jackie Stewart with his "entering the lion's den" comment was was part of the prevailing opinion that Jenson would be dominated by Lewis, and that simply didn't happen.

I agree that Hamilton was the quicker driver over the majority of their 58 races together, and over a single lap for qualifying Lewis was certainly the faster driver, but this was no Alonso-Massa type domination, and whilst people rightly point to the points Lewis lost due to unreliability they seem to forget Italy and Korea this year where Jenson lost good points.

Over the three seasons Lewis scored 10 wins and 657 points compared to Jenson's 8 wins and 672 points - hardly a case of domination.

WT

[dj_bytedisaster]

If you take away all the bad races and are left with the races where both drivers had clean races, no reliability issues, no team blunders, strategy worked out great, and both finished, then it looks a lot more dominant from Hamilton. Stat's are great but they rarely give the true picture.

Jenson ultimately lost out to Hamilton over the 3 year period, but he was also a lot closer in terms of points than he deserved IMO.

I think that's too simplified. Button is so close, because he didn't have an 'off season', like Hamilton had in 2011 when he was getting in his own way more often than not. It was only this year, when HAM had sorted out whatever made him get his knickers in a twist last year that he returned to old form. Button may be a bit slower on average, but he was more reliable and much less prone to be influenced by off-track distractions.

[Brown, Jon Brow]

JB - 14 wins, 1 WDC
Perez - mananged his tyres well a few times

Sergio might be a great talent but he hasn't done anything yet to prove he deserves equal status to a a former world champion. If after 6 races he has been as quick as Jenson then this should change.

[Tazio]

JB - 14 wins, 1 WDC
Perez - mananged his tyres well a few times

Sergio might be a great talent but he hasn't done anything yet to prove he deserves equal status to a a former world champion. If after 6 races he has been as quick as Jenson then this should change.Spot on. Whether Button made this statement or not these guys still have to prove their relative worth on the track. This is really a harmless comment by Button IMO.
How many days untill the next race? :)

[CaptainRaiden]

I am taking the three seasons they were together as a whole, and stick by my comment, given that Jackie Stewart with his "entering the lion's den" comment was was part of the prevailing opinion that Jenson would be dominated by Lewis, and that simply didn't happen.

While Irvine and Stewart's comments were based on the brilliant debut of Lewis, they were still unfounded and I didn't agree with them myself. But you're looking at the whole picture a bit too simplistically IMO. Lewis fairly outclassed Jenson in 2010. 2011 was Lewis' worst year in F1, the only reason why Button finished ahead, but even then Lewis at times steamrolled the opposition and Jenson was nowhere (Nurburgring 2011). In his worst year in F1, he tied Button at 3 wins apiece. In 2012 Lewis took it to another level and severely outclassed Jenson in every area. Lewis had 5 DNFs (to Jenson's 2), because of mechanical failures, none his mistakes, two from strong points finishes, and three DNFs from a dominant race winning position. Add to that several points thrown away by poor pit crew work, and we're looking at a minimum of 100 points lost. Their three years head-to-head would be looking much different at this point.


I agree that Hamilton was the quicker driver over the majority of their 58 races together, and over a single lap for qualifying Lewis was certainly the faster driver, but this was no Alonso-Massa type domination, and whilst people rightly point to the points Lewis lost due to unreliability they seem to forget Italy and Korea this year where Jenson lost good points.

Yes, but not three victories. That's 75 points.


Over the three seasons Lewis scored 10 wins and 657 points compared to Jenson's 8 wins and 672 points - hardly a case of domination.

WT

The superiority was more obvious in qualifying throughout the three years, whereas Jenson may have been better during some races. Even with many more mechanical failures while leading, Lewis still scored more victories and his ability to extract more out of a bad handling car is what puts him in a better light than Jenson too.

[Wasted Talent]

Agree that Lewis probably lost a lot of points to mechanical failures in 2012, but think only Abu Dhabi could be called a clear win that went missing.

He was leading in Singapore but who knows what Vettel/RBR may have done in the last 2/3 of the race?

I don't count Brazil as a lost win as he was only in a winning position due to the safety car losing Jenson and Hulkenburg their 45 sec lead, and in both Brazil and Valencia he lost good finishes by not giving up a place. That is a nutshell is the difference between Lewis and Jenson, JB would not have had contact with either Maldonado or NH and so may have sacrified a place but would have brought the car home and scored points that Lewis effectively threw away.

JB lost second in Italy due to mech failure, was totally innocent in the Korea accident, and lost either a second/win in China due to a poor pit-stop dropping him behind traffic enabling Rosberg to cruise the final stint.

As for 2011, just look at the results - especially from mid-season. Jenson consistently scored more points than Lewis

I have never denied that Lewis is "faster" than Jenson, and accept he is able to extract more out of a less-perfect car, merely that he didn't "dominate" him.

The sadness is that they were a perfect pairing for McLaren but it will be fascinating to see how they fare in 2013.

WT

[CaptainRaiden]

Agree that Lewis probably lost a lot of points to mechanical failures in 2012, but think only Abu Dhabi could be called a clear win that went missing.

He was leading in Singapore but who knows what Vettel/RBR may have done in the last 2/3 of the race?

He retired three times while in the lead of a race, because of mechanical failure, and that's the important point IMO. If we apply the same logic to Button's retirement from second at Monza or pit-stop fumbles at China, who knows what could have happened, he might have binned it anyway or someone else might have overtook him. ;)


That is a nutshell is the difference between Lewis and Jenson, JB would not have had contact with either Maldonado or NH and so may have sacrified a place but would have brought the car home and scored points that Lewis effectively threw away.

How is Hulkenberg's brain fart being attributed to Lewis making contact with him?? :confused: Lewis opened the door and gave him two car's length easily. Is it his fault that NH lost control and banged into him?

As for the incident for Maldonado at Valencia, I believe the undisputed champion of penalties in 2012 could have been a bit more patient and not bang into Lewis. Neither of the two incidents were Lewis' fault.


JB lost second in Italy due to mech failure, was totally innocent in the Korea accident, and lost either a second/win in China due to a poor pit-stop dropping him behind traffic enabling Rosberg to cruise the final stint.

Agreed. But none of Lewis' DNFs were his fault either. He has been faultless this year.


I have never denied that Lewis is "faster" than Jenson, and accept he is able to extract more out of a less-perfect car, merely that he didn't "dominate" him.

While I would admit there was no domination in 2010 and 2011. 2012 however is Lewis dominating over Button by a landslide if you've seen all races and qualifying sessions. Button on many occasions was not even in the same stratosphere, hence by his own admittance his worst year ever.


The sadness is that they were a perfect pairing for McLaren but it will be fascinating to see how they fare in 2013.

Agreed.

[Wasted Talent]

So you are able to give Button the benefit of the doubt when he hits misfortune but not Lewis it seems. For this reason I am actually looking forward to the fact Lewis will be away from the Button/Hamilton comparison gravy train. Hopefully fans will come back down to earth as nothing else matters now. The last 3 seasons are history and a new chapter has started.

No I'm not trying to be biased in this one, just staing that JB had misfortune as well, and that people have quickly forgotten 2011 or put it down as a "bad-year" for Lewis.

Agree that history is history (and it will record that the best Lewis managed in their three years together was 4th in the WDC and Jenson managed a 2nd), and we move on to hopefully another great season next year.

WT

[Wasted Talent]

How is Hulkenberg's brain fart being attributed to Lewis making contact with him?? :confused: Lewis opened the door and gave him two car's length easily. Is it his fault that NH lost control and banged into him?

As for the incident for Maldonado at Valencia, I believe the undisputed champion of penalties in 2012 could have been a bit more patient and not bang into Lewis. Neither of the two incidents were Lewis' fault.


I think we will have to disagree.

To say they were not Lewis' fault is missing my point. I doubt that Jenson would have been involved in either and so would have brought home more points for himself and the team.

If a speeding drunk driver runs over me one night then it might not be my fault but I'll be the one ending up dead.

WT

"To finish first, first one has to finish......"

[Mia 01]

The topic was about Jenson as a team leader 2013. In my opinion he will do just fine, the car will be to his liking and he will be the teams No 1 driver for sure.

[F1boat]

As usual, a topic about Jenson degenerates into comparison with Lewis. :(

[CaptainRaiden]

As usual, a topic about Jenson degenerates into comparison with Lewis. :(

As usual the self appointed forum nannies have nothing interesting to add, but to complain about the direction of a thread which incidentally is still talking about Button.

[driveace]

Well Button should be lead driver,but will he be the fastest,and more point scoring than Perez this next year,and will he score more points in the fastest car on the track this year ,than Lewis will in what many describe as a Donkey ( the Merc)

[Knock-on]

He has been faultless this year.



Sorry, I don't know how you can dare claim that. He certainly went a little wide on a corner in Brazil this year and ended up going slightly off track. ;)

The rest of your post is 100% spot on :D

As for Jenson, he has struggled with the car this year but I think we will see a McLaren much more to his liking next year and a Mercedes that will challenge for wins out of the box for Lewis.

[dj_bytedisaster]

As usual, a topic about Jenson degenerates into comparison with Lewis. :(

Well, if you talk about a driver and his performances, the comparison to his team mate is inevitable, wouldn't you think? After all the team mate's performance in an identical car is the best and most accurate measure.
A lot will depend on whether or not Pirelli bring comedy tires again. Button said that for most part of the season he had to change the car's setup radically, just to make the tires work. That way more often than not he ended up with an understeering car, which he admits to not coping well with.

[F1boat]

The thread is for next year, IMO the comparison to Lewis has been done to death and is not very relevant for the topic...

[Bagwan]

The thread is for next year, IMO the comparison to Lewis has been done to death and is not very relevant for the topic...

The thread topic is a slag on Button , for having voiced that he will be happy to be the leader next year .

The old "Mac treats them equally" rhetoric flag flew , along with the old "Jenson can't cope without a perfect car " was the anthem sung , so the comparison was the main point , point in fact .

As Jenson struggled to cope with a car designed for Lewis , Lewis sailed in a car designed for himself .
That seems to be what Jenson is saying here .

Next year will show if he was right .

[keysersoze]

The old "Mac treats them equally" rhetoric flag flew.

Why diminish it by calling it rhetoric? It's the company policy that has been put into practice, verified time and again.

[CaptainRaiden]

Seriously I'm getting tired of hearing Button fans talking about him being the leader next year now that Lewis left ship. I mean who stopped him from being the leader this year?

It's not Lewis or Mclaren's fault that Button pretty much sucked in 2012.

Besides who's to say Checo can't beat him next year? The mysterious "grip" and "heat" problems that dog Button from time to time don't seem to be bothering Perez that much.

[Mia 01]

Jenson sucked??

Lewis 190
Jenson 188.

Then Lewis also sucked as I understand.

[CaptainRaiden]

Jenson sucked??

Lewis 190
Jenson 188.

Then Lewis also sucked as I understand.

Did you even watch Formula 1 this season??

[Knock-on]

Jenson sucked??

Lewis 190
Jenson 188.

Then Lewis also sucked as I understand.

I'm a huge Jenson fan but I readily conceed that Lewis was able to extract much more from the McLaren this year. Next year I am sure McLaren will be in a better position to tune the car so Jenson can exploite it better.

[Bagwan]

Why diminish it by calling it rhetoric? It's the company policy that has been put into practice, verified time and again.

"We're racing Fernando ." , so Alonso would agree with me , and perhaps so would Coulthard .

[Knock-on]

I don't understand the DC comment :confused: and with Fred, Lewis was told the only person he was racing was his team mate so you've rather proved the point ;)

[wedge]

I'll start off by saying JB surprised me his first year at McLaren. I didn't think he had either the talent or the mental strength to challenge Lewis--few of us did--and he clearly proved many of us wrong. Since then, even though Hamilton has proven to be quicker, Jenson has proven time and again that he's an elite driver.

But I'm annoyed by his latest comments about "molding the team" around him and being "team leader."

Sure, Sergio is new and young, but JB seems to have ignored McLaren's philosophy that no driver gets preferential treatment and, until one is mathematically eliminated from the championship, the other won't be asked to move over during a race.

If I was a crew member, I'd be thinking "You weren't number 1 when Lewis was here. We produced two equal cars and let you both get on with it. We didn't mold the team around him. And he still beat you. Why would we mold the team around you now--all of a sudden change our long-standing philosophy--for a driver who was clearly slower than the one who left? What's all this 'I' business? What happened to 'We'?

I don't have a problem with Checo's comments.

Read into it what you will. Very easy to play the cocky, arrogant card.

It shows ambition and desire.

I say bring it on. If he consistently extracts the maximum and gets results then he has every right to ask for number one status. I'm looking forward to see the behaviourial outcome within McLaren.

BTW, to say that there are no team orders at McLaren is an urban myth...

[Knock-on]

McLaren will use team orders when there is no realistic chance that one driver can win the championship or if two drivers are on different strategy and they dont want one to hold the other up.

Apart from that, there is plenty of evidence that they are allowed to fight it out and negligable evidence that they don't. The only example I can think of was when Lewis was told not to risk taking both drivers out at Monoco which seems quite sensible.

[zako85]

As for 2011, just look at the results - especially from mid-season. Jenson consistently scored more points than Lewis

I have never denied that Lewis is "faster" than Jenson, and accept he is able to extract more out of a less-perfect car, merely that he didn't "dominate" him.

The sadness is that they were a perfect pairing for McLaren but it will be fascinating to see how they fare in 2013.

WT

Count all the points that Hamilton lost due to outside circumstances. Simply count the points corresponding to when he retired. The do the same to Button. In the light of this I don't see how to describe the McLaren team battle other than as clear dominance by Hamilton. Hamilton lost too many points for reasons outside of his control (even his crash with Maldonado might not have happened if he did not lose his lead due to a bad pit stop prior). On the other hand, Button indeed earned his points count, and did not deserve something significantly better than that. He spent too many races driving anonymously somewhere in mid-pack, struggling with tires, "balance", and other drivers.

I can accept the notion that we haven't seen the best of Button this year, like it happened with say Hamilton or Webber last year. Nonetheless, even though there are plenty of counter-examples, I still believe in the theory that the best predictor of next year's performance is current year's performance (both, cars and drivers). I think the odds are good that McLaren drivers will do well, but will not challenge for WDC. It will probably be another Alonso vs Vettel battle again.

[airshifter]

I see no problem with Jenson wanting to step up and assume the role as the team leader. McLaren have always allowed their drivers to race each other with very few exexptions. Though Sergio is a driver I like and support he is the rookie to the team, so it's natural that Jenson will feel as if he is the team leader, but it doesn't suggest he expects special treatment either.

The only real problem will be if Sergio starts kicking his butt in races... that could be awkward. But personally I feel Jenson would take it in stride and support Sergio if that were to happen. Not that I really expect it, but I don't think he will expect to be the #1 priority in the same manner Alonso did.

[truefan72]

and now Button thinks that Hamilton learned from him and he is one of the best drivers out there developing cars
Formula 1 - Button: Hamilton learned from me at McLaren - Yahoo! Eurosport UK (http://eurosport.yahoo.com/news/formula-1-button-hamilton-learned-mclaren-114644830.html)

where is he getting all this sudden hubris from, methinks the fact that Hamilton isn't his teammate anymore is allowing him to open his mouth and speak all kinds of nonsense these days
certainly did not hear this kind of talk before.

and for those of you who want the truth straight from from the driver himself: "The problem for me is if I can't get the car there I do struggle more than some."

[Knock-on]

Sorry mate but you should re-read the article before posting rhetoric.

Button says that they have learnt off each other. He also admits he isn't the best at driving around car issues and that Lewis is a superb driver over one lap but that what he has picked up from Button is that to finish first, first you must finish. Over the past years, Hamilton has indeed looked more complete.

He also says tht he feels he is one of the best drivers at helping to develop a car. As a WDC, I would hope he is and see nothing contentious about stating that.

Seems very fair to me.

[CaptainRaiden]

He also says tht he feels he is one of the best drivers at helping to develop a car. As a WDC, I would hope he is and see nothing contentious about stating that.

Seems very fair to me.

While I agree with the rest of your post, I don't agree with Button's assumption here. Which car has he really developed? His Honda years were spent in doldrums, only maybe 2004 and 2006 of any mentionable note. A lot was said by Button and Honda about the 2007-2008 car and how much money Honda pumped into developing it, turned out to be an absolute turd. The 2009 Brawn GP was a stroke of brilliance, but more down to Honda's money, engineers exploiting the loophole and the double diffuser.

Even then Button's performance waned over the second half of the season with Rubens continuously getting the upper hand and also getting 2 victories. If Brawn would have started the year on equal footing with Red Bull, I highly doubt Button's imaginary car developing abilities would have saved him. He doesn't really have a history of getting a team behind him or helping the direction of car development to suit him better. 2012 wouldn't be such a sucky-sucktastic year for him if he did.

[CaptainRaiden]

Having said all that, I truly believe that having Button as his teammate was the best thing that happened to Lewis. Lewis had a brilliant debut against Alonso, the two time WDC, even beating him for the better part of the year. His confidence surely skyrocketed after that. The next two years steamrolling Heiki also would have added extra bulk to his ego. When Button came, everyone almost assumed he would get thrashed by Lewis, but not so. Button not only held his own, but proved to be a worthy challenger (For 2010 and 2011 at least). As competitive a driver Lewis is, he brought his A game in 2012 and once again steamrolled Button, with his WDC challenge only being diminished by mechanical failures and team pit stop errors.

I believe Mercedes GP has gotten a much more mature and complete Lewis Hamilton, thanks to Button.