Champ Button was my choice, says Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton has countered suggestions he did not want Jenson Button as his McLaren team mate by saying he proposed the Formula One champion in the first place. “Something you will not know is that I actually called (McLaren team principal) Martin (Whitmarsh) and said “What about Jenson?”, which was before thay had negotiations,” the 2008 champion told reporters after the launch of the new MP4-25 car. “I was calling them and asking them, “What is going on? I keep reading all these different stories about different drivers. What is happening?”
Button won the title with Brawn GP, now Mercedes, at the Brazilian Grand Prix in October and will have the number one on his car for the first time in his motor racing career. He was announced as a McLaren driver on November 18, five days after visiting the team’s factory for the first time and a month after winning the title in Sao Paulo. Button said he started quizzing Hamilton about the team at the Brazilian Grand Prix. “We spoke a little bit in the Abu Dhabi (the November 1 seasonender) and Brazil but not about me coming here,” said Button when asked whether he had discussed a possible move with Hamilton.
“I asked questions about McLaren, he did not know why I was asking the questions. I was just interested, just being nosey really. You are always going to ask people what experiences are like in other teams. I did not think for one second before Brazil that I would be changing teams,” added Button. “I did not think the option was there, to start with, and just never thought about it. But obviously your mindset changes when you achieve something you have worked so hard for and you look for new challenges.”
Whitmarsh added: “As we evaluated the driver market, which we did over a number of weeks, Lewis was consistently positive about Jenson. “As I think was clear today, they have a high regard for each other and are already getting on well.” Hamilton has been backed by McLaren for more than a decade and some have queried the wisdom of Button stepping in to the “Lions’ Den” when he might have remained Top Dog at Mercedes. Others, such as ex-Ferrari driver Eddie Irvine, have suggested Button will be well beaten on the track by Hamilton, who has never been defeated by a team-mate over the season.
