Say hello to a new Mclaren driver if this deal fails.....Kimi..have a nice life Brawn unlikely to match Button's salary demands Wednesday 11th November 2009 - PlanetF1.com Jenson Button's contract negotiations has taken a new twist with team principal Ross Brawn suggesting they are unlikely to match his salary demands. Newly crowned World Champion Button is looking for a big increase after taking a pay cut at the start of the year following the demise of Honda. However, his bosses at Brawn are yet to match his demands and McLaren are reportedly ready to pounce should the negotiations end in deadlock. Team boss Brawn, who recently stated that he is "99 per cent certain" that the Englishman will stay, hinted that they will probably offer him more freedom to negotiate his own sponsorship deals instead of giving him a contract worth more than £6m a year. "We can offer a higher proportion of driver freedom and that will probably be the route we will go," Brawn is quoted in The Guardian. "Jenson has some freedom for his own endorsements but has a commitment to meet our obligations."
After every rule change there is the possibility that a smaller team ends up at the front end of the grid. History has shown that that the big teams (Ferrari, McLaren) usually catch up quickly - just because they have the resources. In 2009 Brawn was dominant at the first races, not anymore at the end. If the test ban had not existed, other teams had catched up even faster. Of course we have a new rule change for next year with the refuelling ban; perhaps history repeats itself in 2010. But my bets are on Ferrari and McLaren again - with Red Bull as the odd team out. If I were in Jenson's shoes, I would be glad to accept a seat at these teams.
Although, BrawnGP suspended development on their car very early on in the season to concentrate on next year's car. That's why they didn't get any faster towards the end of the season and were caught up by Mercedes and Ferrari and surpassed by Red Bull. In the end, they were vindicated in their decision as they won both titles without any further development. I wouldn't write off their chances for next year yet... All the best, Andrew.
True in those terms, but in the development scheme Brawn are severely underfunded and Im betting JB never gets another title unless he leaves and goes somewhere like Mclaren. He will have a better shot, yes LH rules the teams but what if he has a bad year. Sooner or later you back the better horse when the last furlong approaches.
But what if Merc jumps from the Mac ship, & join the Brackley crew. then Brawn is in the position to repeat themselfs, & Mac has some things to sort out....
McLaren is building its own engines for the MP4 12C road car. It'd be an entirely logical step for them to build their own F1 engine.....
+1. Makes far more sense than trying to start over yet again, especially in a team where Lewis is so settled already. (Please note that I'm not saying Button wouldn't get equal treatment there, just that he would be playing catch up all the time, trying to settle in, which could hamper his on track performance).
I would be very surprised if Brawn were any better than fourth-best next year. Jenson may do well to consider that McLaren option. But didn't Mac say recently that their driver situation was settled?
Anthony would welcome Kimi and he and Lewis would be good for each other - that seems to say enough. Carol
Slim. They don't want to pay more than £6 million for Button and I think kimi knows much like the rest of the world, that Brawn haven't got much money for next year so they likely won't be in a championship winning position.
[cynical mode on] They CLAIM to have suspended development very early in the season. It sounds a lot better than "we run out of money for development" or "we took the wrong road in development".... [cynical mode off]. How much is truth and how much is psychological warfare?
Hamilton would beat Button every race in identical cars. Button would be whining to the media by Monaco. Bring it on.
I'd say between slim and none, and Slims just left town!. If McLaren are baulking at Kimi's pay demand, Brawn aren't even going to pick up the phone to talk to him.
I was under the impression that they would be taking on BMWs engine program. (not running BMW motors, but purchasing there engine program to kick start there in house engine program)
isn't it funny? (this is just my interepation on the reason for rules and perhaps I am interpreting it wrong) So one of the reasons why brawn was so successful was because they were protected by a rule to keep the big money teams from testing all season and making the small independent teams into traffic cones on the track. When in reality for 09 that rule ended up hindering the manufacturer to catch up to the smart thinking of the independent teams... so then the independent teams were allowed to run away with it! for some reason I find comedy in that. It goes to show you how important it is to make a "good" rule and not just a rule from one particular position or perspective... but thats another conversation all in of itself
If I were Brawn I'd be doing the same thing. They've got the smarts to develop a good car and then find someone who's willing to take a chance driving. JB now wants big bucks so let him go find it if he doesn't want to stay. Water will find its level.
Button would be smart to stay where he is. Unless he goes to a back of the pack team he's not going to get the same treatment as he would at Brawn one would imagine. He's not going to win a WDC no matter where he goes if you ask me because he'd likely be a #2 driver at any of the top teams. Ferrari has Alonso, McLaren has Hamilton, and Red Bull has Vettel. They all drive a lot better than Button.
Brawn has a healthy and honest opinion of star drivers and their worth. Having worked with Michael I guess he's a bit hard to impress
It would be a HUGE mistake for JB to stay at Brawn if he could go to McLaren instead. I doubt Brawn will be faster in '10 than McLaren, and I am very sure over the next 3 years, McLaren will be much faster. If JB loses this opportunity now, he won't be able to get it back next year. JB's stock has never been higher - this is the time to strike. A seat is available at one of the very top teams - an opportunity he has never had before. He would be foolish to stay with Brawn and not go to McLaren.
