Vandoorne gets 2017 McLaren seat

[N4D13]

So it's official now - Stoffel Vandoorne will be driving for McLaren in 2017 alongside Alonso. That is hardly a surprise, although I'm really surprised to see that Button will be sticking along as a reserve driver. What do you think?

[Morte66]

I wonder what exactly Button is going to do.

Will he do anything outside F1 (e.g. sports car racing) if he's still under contract to McLaren?

Or will he be a reserve driver and mentor?

TBH I'd thought he'd be taking Massa's seat...

[Rollo]

I wonder what exactly Button is going to do.

Will he do anything outside F1 (e.g. sports car racing) if he's still under contract to McLaren?


25, 52, 22? Halfords Yuasa Honda?

Honda would be daft if it didn't pull on that lever.

[steveaki13]

Sad to see Jenson not racing next season, but I guess time has to move on. I agree with you guys though that it would be surprising if he just sits in the garage all season.

I would like to seem him race in other categories. I would have liked to see him head to Williams also.

[Jag_Warrior]

Wonder if he's waiting to see if Alonso re-ups for 2018? But I'm surprised that he didn't go for the Williams seat too. With this, seems like he might just fade away (whether Alonso comes back in 2018 or not).

[Koz]

I can't see him driving in 2018. Maybe this is the start of a long non racing career at McLaren.

[The Black Knight]

I'm actually quite gutted that Jenson is leaving the sport. I never liked him very much up until a couple of years ago but in the last 6-7 years he has really come along as a person, sports personality and driver.

He's probably in the top 5-6 drivers to grace the formula one grid over the last 17 years and has always been underrated.

Over the course of a season he has beaten some stiff competition such as Hamilton and Alonso. This is no easy feat given how highly ranked those two are. Jenson is an extremely complete driver and, in my opinion, a great one. Maybe lacks just a little pace to be considered among the all time greats but he sure is pretty close.

That Alonso refers to him as his toughest team mate every just sums up how good Jenson he is.

[N. Jones]

I think Button at his age should not sit out a year.

[The Black Knight]

I think Button at his age should not sit out a year.

Essentially he's doing a David Coulthard on it and taking a back seat with the potential to fill a race seat should something happen to Alonso or Vandoorne. I doubt we'll ever see him in a F1 car again. Jenson was probably the driver of the day in Monza I felt so I don't see any impediment to his return after 2017.

[Nitrodaze]

On Button, he probably really needs a sabbatical from F1. He has taken the decision to step back with two very good opportunities for a race seat next year open to him. Williams probably waited as long as they could for Jensen to make a decision, hence that opportunity may have gone cold. Renault sort of placed an open invitation to Alonso and Button when they openly said they wanted a driver that can lead the team.

Jensen has left his mark on F1. If he doesn't come back to the sport ever again, his place in F1 history is assured as the driver world champion of 2009. I think if he wants a seat for 2017, he would easily find one. However, if he sit out more than one year of F1 racing, it may be very hard for him to come back. The trend nowadays is favoring the young and there are a great crop of them emerging from the lower formulas.

On Alonso and Vandoone partnership, you have to go back to 2007 when Alonso was last paired with a talented rookie. You saw how that one turned out. Hence, this partnership is one to watch in 2017. If Vandoone is as good as the signs seem to suggest that he is. There could be very entertaining sparks at Mclaren next year, assuming Honda finally turns up with a competitive engine. I suppose you could say that the wise head of Ron is hedging his bet. If sparks starts to fly next year, there is Jensen in the wings to step into one of the dueling seats. Hence, l think Jenson was retained to remind both drivers that, Mclaren would not tolerate a repeat of the rivalry that led to the Ferrari-gate incident of 2007.

That said, l cannot see why Mclaren would not loan Jenson to another team if they want him and Jenson wants to continue to race in 2017.