Brawn "99 per cent" sure Button will stay
Brawn is sure Button will remain with the team in 2010
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By James Christie. |  |
Monday, 26, Oct 2009 09:13
By Adam Leveridge
Brawn GP team boss and owner Ross Brawn is '99 per cent sure' newly crowned world champion Jenson Button will stay with the Brackley-based squad in 2010.
Last week, reports emerged that McLaren had approached the 29-year-old about partnering up with 2008 champion and fellow Brit Lewis Hamilton in 2010, with Button yet to agree on a salary deal with Brawn GP.
However, Brawn said he would like Button to remain with the team and he is sure a solution will be found.
"Jenson is obviously a great driver and for those teams without their full complement of drivers, he's got to be a target," Brawn told the BBC.
"We want Jenson to stay in the team and I think we'll find a solution.
"Jenson has a contract with us but of course that contract is not the salary of a world champion, not the salary of a team that's now in a much stronger position than it was 10 months ago.
"We are working with Jenson to find a balance between what we can afford and what he feels is fair for his status and contribution he can make in the future."
When asked how sure he was that Button, who clinched the title in Brazil this month with a race to spare, would be staying, Brawn added: "You are never 100 per cent certain, but I'd say 99."
When Honda pulled out of formula one last December, Button took a hefty pay cut. However, at his first public appearance in the UK last Tuesday, the 29-year old stated his wage is not as important as being in a quick car.
On the other hand, Button's manager Richard Goddard has since stated he is looking to negotiate a better deal on par with the one he had with Honda in 2008.