Vettel surprised by Button’s move
November 22, 2009 by Laura Marieee
Filed under People & Events, Top Story
Autosport reported this morning that Vettel is surprised by Button’s switch to McLaren for next season.
Vettel, who finished second behind Button in this year’s championship, said he hadn’t expected Button to leave the team he won the championship with, and that he thinks Mercedes F1 will be a strong 2010 contender.
This is what was reported on Autosport this morning:
“I think it was a surprise to everyone,” Vettel told AUTOSPORT. “Brawn GP, now Mercedes GP, was very very strong this year. They won the drivers’ and constructors’ championships. They had a very good car, a good team and it’s always a surprise if a champion, in a champion team, is leaving.
“You don’t know if things will change completely next year, but in that regard for Brawn GP it was a very positive thing to happen that Mercedes is now taking over and it’s a manufacturer team.
“So it was a surprise and for next year they’re going to be strong. McLaren always has been. This year they were struggling a little bit but I think looking back they’ve always been strong.”
Vettel said it would be intriguing to watch how Button fares as the new boy coming in at McLaren, with Lewis Hamilton entering his fourth season with the team.
“I think it will be interesting,” he said. “They’re obviously both English and McLaren is an English team. Lewis knows the team very well, already for a couple of years now, Jenson is the new one coming in, so we will see.”
I’ve already said in my column this week that Button’s move may not necessarily be wise, and it seems I’m not the only one surprised by his move. But Vettel’s point is directed more at Button’s move after having just won the championship with Brawn, and this is a fair point. McLaren may be able to offer Button the salary he is after, but to leave Brawn heading for a team with a better salary does seem like he’s saying ‘thanks for the championship, now I’m off elsewhere’ without concern for everything he has been through with the Brawn team, from the lows of Honda to the highs of this season.
Whatever way you look at it, Vettel has a point, it does seem rather soon to be departing the team after such a successful season, but then this is F1, and it’s not like it hasn’t happened before. As for Mercedes F1 being successful in 2010- time will tell.
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Mercedes sure cant wait to get this guy in their team. He to me seems like the best driver out there. Really impressed by how he drove and behaved.
I would have to agree.
The trick is for Mercedes GP to sign a driver on a short contract (no more than 1 year) who is competitive but can be expended if SV should become available. No shortage of names there.
Now that Rosberg has been confirmed, they can wait until 2011 to try to sign Vettel who is obviously making overtures to MB with his comments.
Question is: will N Heidfeld agree to a short contract? I’m guessing no. This may have been the same sticking point to losing Button to McLaren.
I wish the dumb stories about MS returning would go away.
I’m sure everyone is surprised, but as far as Button’s reason for leaving is concerned, I think the money issue should be put to rest. Whatever his true reason for leaving, both he and Mercedes’ management agree that the remuneration aspect was, in the end, not a factor.
I do think Button made a very shrewd move, and I don’t think people give him enough credit for thinking his decision through. He would get swallowed up in the new Mercedes team and fade into obscurity very, very quickly. At MacLaren, he has a chance to shine in one of the top cars/teams, because of his nationality, his (perceived?) underdog status within the team and the sheer audacity of his surprise move.
I get a feeling Button is a man who understands very well his own chances for future success, if not his own limits. He freely admits he had a ‘monster’ of a car in ‘09, and I’m sure he knows as well as any of us armchair commentators (ha!) that his best chance has come — which he duly seized — and that it probably won’t happen again.
And finally, don’t underestimate his ability to win over some hearts and minds at MacLaren. He may not be their future, but I sincerely believe the team won’t throw him completely to the wolves, either. It would NOT go down well here in England.
Just to add, that a lot of people are making comments about Button’s lack of loyalty to Brawn, but what about Brawns’ loyalty to Button? Jenson has proven over the years his desire to stay with a team, so I can only assume Brawn went out of their way to alienate him in some way, whether monetarily or otherwise.
Yes Button is receiving lot of flak when he shouldnt be. Everybody knows that Merc wants 2 German drivers and Kimi is in the market. So it makes sense to sign as soon as possible with the best offer that he could get.
Also McLaren throws new challenges at him and gives him an opportunity to prove that he was a worthy champion.