Button hails beginning of new era at BAR-Honda
Button confirmed he is now contracted to remain a BAR driver “for a few years” after being released from his obligation, signed last year, to join Williams for 2006.
And the Briton, who is yet to secure his first Grand Prix win, believes the opportunity is now there to step up a level and challenge for the title.
“This is where it all starts, really, for me,” said Button ahead of this weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix.
“I have been in Formula One for six years but we are going to build on where we are at the moment and, for me, this is the place that it is really going to all start.
“I think we are a team that will be fighting for the world championship in the future. I would not have fought as hard for this if I did not truly believe that.”
Button had prolonged talks with Williams boss Frank Williams, who initially said the Briton was “not for sale”, and the driver praised him for his conduct during the lengthy negotiations.
“I am ecstatic we have been able to sort out this situation, it has not been nice, but thanks go to Frank,” said Button.
“We are good friends, so it is a tough position to be in. I had to go with what I though was right and I think it showed how determined I was to make this work, how much I really want to be at BAR-Honda. It is good we could stop it before it went any further.
“I’ve not just walked away, we’ve come to an agreement that’s good for both of us. I had as many meetings as I could with him and he realised it was down to myself. That made the decision.”
Button thinks 2006 will bring a return to the form that saw him score 85 points and finish third in the drivers’ championship with BAR in 2004.
He is confident his new team-mate Rubens Barrichello, who arrives from Ferrari will help improve BAR’s pace.
“I am looking forward to racing with him. He has a lot of experience and he seems to be a capable driver. It will be interesting to have a new challenge,” Button said. “We will work together and I am sure we will be fierce rivals on the circuit.”
For his part, Barrichello believes that BAR have everything they need to mount an assault on the World Championship now that Button has been confirmed.
The Brazilian signed while Button’s future was uncertain, and he’s now overjoyed that BAR have won the fight to keep the Briton.
“I am very happy because I think now the team has a true chance of becoming World Champions,” he said.
“We have two drivers with the full potential of becoming World Champion, the backing of Honda and BAR and everything, I think that it is good we have two drivers capable of winning. I am delighted.”
Barrichello will not be able to test for BAR in December because his contract with Ferrari does not run out until the end of the year - and the team are not willing to let him go before then.
With the winter testing ban lasting from the end of the season until the start of December, it means that Barrichello will have a lengthy holiday after the season.
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