Jenson to McLaren; we'll see who has the last laugh!

My first post!! What a week to launch my blog. Granted it's not as newsworthy as Mercedes' buyout of Brawn, Kimi's farewell or Buttons move to Macca but it isn't far off!

Today the news was broken; Jenson Button has completed his move to McLaren. Many people have questioned this; asking why the current F1 champion would want to step into a team that is built around Lewis Hamilton, someone who won't easily be beaten (just ask Fernando Alonso). I on the other hand am quite happy for him. A year ago he was down and out - it looked like he would never win another race, let alone a title. He took the gamble to stay with Ross Brawn rather than jump ship to Toro Rosso or Renault and he got Lucky. It is true that he wouldn't have got close to being champion had he not been driving the Brawn but he still had to go out there and win those races; the title didn't just win itself and I feel that he deserved it more than Barrichello (just look at their relative performaces during the race at Brazil).

Brawn's success has come at a price. This year they survived on the charity of Honda who ensured that Ross had enough money to go racing and keep as many people as possible in a job. Luckily the Brawn GP 001 was a phenomenal car and the Mercedes was a potent and reliable power pack to propel it (try saying that 5 times when drunk). The trouble is that this team was born out of the credit crunch and this has caused CEO Nick Fry (never the best person at attracting sponsors) many problems - people just don't want to invest. The only thing that could be done was to sell the team whist they were on the crest of a wave. The Mercedes deal was done (I think around the Italian GP where Brawns 1-2 finish had all but secured the constructors title) and the team was secured in a way Brawn and Fry could not have managed on their own.

Mercedes are a decent company and as such they weren't going to abandon McLaren or enter like a wrecking ball and destroy all that Brawn has built in the last year. They wanted 2 things; Mercedes branding next year (for which they needed McLaren's permission) and a German superstar to drive one of their cars. I imagine that Ross Brawn was happy to accomodate Nico Rosberg but made the argument that consistency helps to maintain winning form and so he had to choose between his (then soon to be) champion Button or (second fiddle) Rubens. He chose Button. Button, aware that Merc were coming on board, demanded more money and a long term (3 year) contract. It is the latter point which I think caused all of the problems. Mercedes didn't want Jenson for 3 years; they wanted him until they can get hold of Vettel. This is why Button left.

Going to McLaren has almost guarenteed him a race winning car for the next 3 years; something he would have jumped at the chance of a year ago. Moreover, even before the Mercedes deal was annonced, the general view was that next year is going to be a battle between McLaren and Ferrari with Brawn and Red Bull fighting for 3rd. If these predictions turn out to be correct then Button in a Brawn/Mercedes wouldn't have beaten Lewis in a McLaren anyway and at the end of it he would probably have to find himself another drive (but without reigning champ status). Button in a McLaren however, will probably win races and he has the chance to fight with Lewis. If he fails to beat the 2008 champion then he can be assured of a seat the following year and he may even get his win tally into double figures (secretly I think he's out to better DC's 13). On the other hand, if he beats Lewis then the likelihood is that he will have retained his championship, definitely won races and have the right to force all the nay-sayers to eat their words!

At the end of the day, Button has today put himself in the position where he can continue his success with one of motorsports great teams and I wish him the best of luck!