Jenson Button enjoyed a superb career in Formula 1 and won the world championship for Brawn GP at the end of the 2009 season.
The British driver clinched the title in Brazil as he finished in fifth place after a very difficult season for the team in their one and only year.
Brawn GP hit the ground running in F1 as they won six of the first seven races with Button taking all the victories in those early races.
The rest of the season was tricky as the team had little money to bring updates to their car. This allowed the rest of the grid and Red Bull in particular to catch up.
It was an emotional moment when Button took the championship but he told the Sky Sports F1 podcast the one aspect which wasn’t as he thought it would be.
Jenson Button admits title celebrations weren’t what he ‘dreamt of’
Winning the Formula 1 world championship is the pinnacle of a driver’s career and the culmination of a lifetime of dedication.
Button was impressed with Max Verstappen after taking his fourth title at the Las Vegas Grand Prix this season as he joined a very exclusive club of four-time champions.
The 2009 championship was a very unique story, but Button was immediately thrown in front of the cameras to do interviews, which may have dimmed the enjoyment of taking the title.
He explained that winning the championship was a relief, but he dreamt of celebrating with his team rather than undertaking arduous media commitments.
He said: “It’s not the emotion that probably everyone thinks it is. I think if the World Championship was one race, there would be that heightened emotion because you just crossed the finish line; you’ve won the race. It’s a very, very different emotion.
“And also because you don’t really celebrate how you would dream of celebrating because you’re straight in front of the cameras.
“That’s not what you dreamt of when you crossed the finish line. You thought you’d get out the car, you’d be with the team for hours on end, just laughing and joking and celebrating and hugging and kissing and drinking. And it’s all a bit delayed.”
The 2009 season was Jenson Button’s only opportunity to win the world championship
Button had a mixed opening few seasons of his Formula 1 career and he had some success at BAR but endured two difficult years with Honda in 2007 and 2008.
The British driver had some luck alongside Rubens Barrichello heading into 2009 as Ross Brawn bought the Honda team and arrived at the first race in Australia with a significant advantage over the field.
| 1 | Jenson Button | GBR | Brawn Mercedes | 95 |
| 2 | Sebastian Vettel | GER | RBR Renault | 84 |
| 3 | Rubens Barrichello | BRA | Brawn Mercedes | 77 |
| 4 | Mark Webber | AUS | RBR Renault | 69.5 |
| 5 | Lewis Hamilton | GBR | McLaren Mercedes | 49 |
Following the championship success, three successful years followed at McLaren, but Button wasn’t able to match his teammate Lewis Hamilton.
He then stayed at McLaren as they regressed away from race victories to floundering in the midfield and Button retired from F1 in 2016.
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