Jenson Button

An important factor in his decision was the chance to work with David Richards, the BAR team principal. He finished the season seventh with 14 points, one place and 5 points ahead of Trulli.

Button faced early hostility from new teammate Villeneuve, who suggested that Button had been hired for his marketing appeal more than his ability, and compared him to a "member of a boy band". Button responded by denying he had anything to prove to Villeneuve; "I am not here to earn Jacques' respect, I am here to win and move the team forward". Their relationship did not improve after the first Grand Prix in Australia: Villeneuve was due to pit, but stayed out an extra lap and pitted when Button was due in, leaving Button waiting in the pit lane while Villeneuve's car was serviced. Villeneuve blamed it on "radio problems", but both Button and team principal David Richards hinted that they did not believe him. Button performed well in the first six races, scoring eight points (the points system had changed that year to award points to the top eight finishers), including fourth place at the Austrian Grand Prix; Villeneuve had scored only three. Button crashed heavily at 185 mph (298 km/h) during Saturday practice in Monaco, briefly knocking him unconscious, and he was detained in hospital overnight. Despite the accident Button still wanted to race, but was withdrawn by his team on medical advice. Read Less

A vacant race seat became available at the Williams team, following the departure of Alex Zanardi, and team boss Frank Williams arranged a 'shoot-out' test between Button and Formula 3000 racer Bruno Junqueira, with Button securing the drive. This made him Britain's youngest ever Formula One driver. Button was heavily hyped before his first race: former driver Gerhard Berger described him as a "phenomenon"; the head of his karting team, Paul Lemmens, compared him to Ayrton Senna; and Williams' technical director Patrick Head said he was "remarkably mature and definitely a star of the future". However some had misgivings about his lack of experience and ability to cope with the pressures of Formula One.

Making his début in Australia, Button crashed during practice and qualified second-last on the grid. However, he performed strongly in the race and was set to score a point before his engine failed 11 laps from the finish. A sixth-place finish at the next race in Brazil made him, at the time, the youngest driver ever to score a point. In his first six races, he outqualified his teammate Ralf Schumacher twice, and was consistently close in pace; journalist David Tremayne described Button's start as "the stuff of any team owner's wildest dreams". However, Williams had intended to use Button only until they could exercise their option to buy the highly rated Juan Pablo Montoya out of his contract at Ganassi Racing. Read Less

Button has been dating Japanese model Jessica Michibata for two and a half years. Button has two tattoos: a black coat button on his right forearm; and Japanese kanji-characters on his ankle which say this was done before he won the world title, and is the name of Button's triathlon team. Since mid-2010, the same legend has appeared on Button's race helmet. Button is also a brand ambassador for Head & Shoulders, and has appeared in advertising campaigns for the company.

Button is also involved in charitable work through the creation of The Jenson Button Trust. Established in March 2010, the Trust provides donations to a number of charitable causes. Each year the Trust will select and nominate charitable beneficiaries to which the funds will be distributed.

On 5 September 2011, Jenson Button opened a restaurant on Beulah Street in Harrogate called Victus, but it closed after less than a year in trading. Button's manager Richard Goddard said "unfortunately the business was launched in an economy which then continued to slide and just hasn’t stopped, with people simply not having the disposable income needed to spend in restaurants." Read Less

He signed a three-year deal for a reported £6 million per season to drive alongside former world champion Lewis Hamilton. Button said he moved because he wanted the motivation and challenge from competing head-to-head with Hamilton, and that Brawn GP had offered him more money. A number of people, including former Formula One drivers John Watson, Jackie Stewart and Eddie Irvine, believed the move was a mistake, and that Button would struggle to compete with Hamilton at McLaren.

After a seventh place finish in the opening round in Bahrain, Button won the second race in Australia from fourth on the grid. Button was the first to come in for slick tyres on a damp but drying track, which lifted him to second place after the other drivers had pitted. He inherited the lead when Vettel retired with brake problems and maintained his lead to the end without changing his tyres again. His victory made him the thirteenth driver in Formula One history to have won Grands Prix for at least three different constructors. Following an eighth place finish in Malaysia, after starting seventeenth, Button went on to win his second race of the season from fifth on the grid in China, by staying on slick tyres while most of the other drivers pitted for intermediates, he was promoted to second place. However, the rain did not come, and the other drivers had to pit again for dry tyres. Read Less