Formula 1 Champion Jenson Button’s career highlights – Formula 1
Jenson Button is a British Formula 1 driver, born on January 19, 1980 in Frome, Somerset.
Button was born to Simone Lyons and John Button. Button’s father was a former Rally cross driver and was well known during the 1970s for his Colorado Beetle Volkswagen. Button has three siblings, and is the only son to his parents with three elder sisters.
At age seven his parents divorced, which left him and his sisters to be brought up by his South Africa-born mother Simone Lyons in Frome.
Button had his schooling at the Vallis First School, Selwood Middle School and then moved to Frome Community College. The driver in Button started to develop at the early age of eight, when he started karting. Button also got a taste of life’s irony when
he failed his first driving test for parking too close to a parked vehicle. Although he did not let that get to his heart and successfully earned his license at the second attempt.
It was his father who introduced him to it and it took the young Button only a year to develop extraordinary skills at the sport. In 1989, he came first in the British Super Prix. He then went on to win an impressive 34 races of the 1991 British Cadet Kart
Championship and claimed the title. He went on to win a total of three British Open Kart Championship and also won the 1997 Ayrton Senna Memorial Cup resulting in becoming the youngest driver ever to win the European Super A Championship.
Button still young at the age of 18 moved into car racing, and had quite a successful run at it as well, winning the British Formula Ford Championship and the McLaren Auto sport BRDC Young Driver Award. He finished the season as the top rookie driver, and
third overall.
In the year 2000, a seat was available at the Williams team, and by winning a ‘shoot-out’ test against the Formula 3000 racer Bruno Junqueira, he secured his place and became Britain’s youngest ever Formula 1 driver.
Button made his debut in Australia, although he crashed during the practice and qualified second last on the grid, but gave a strong performance in the race but his good show was hampered when his car’s engine failed. After scoring a point in Brazil, which
also made him the youngest driver ever to do so, Button was dubbed to be the next big thing, however the Williams team was looking for some experienced hands in Juan Pablo Montoya, who became his replacement midway through the season.
In 2001, Button joined the experience of driver Giancarlo Fisichella at Benetton, but did not have a good run because the Benetton car was not very competitive. Through the years, Button learnt from his mistakes and improved upon his racing skills. He gained
experience and upped his learning curve from all the difficulties to become the seasoned driver he is today.
In the current 2011 Formula 1 season, Button ranks 2nd behind the German Sebastian Vettel, although the season started slow for Button, but he has improved quite a bit in the drivers’ championship.
Button did suffer from some disappointment at the British Grand Prix, when he had to retire because of an error at the final pit stop. Again in the German Grand Prix, he had to retire twice due to some issues with the hydraulics of the car. The season’s
highlight came when Button recorded his 200th Formula 1 race at the Hungarian Grand Prix, which was also the same place where he had won his first Grand Prix in 2006. He also finished second at Monza and in Singapore and
has a shot at disturbing Vettel’s second consecutive title win.
Button is smooth driver and it is a treat to watch him drive. There is no doubt that he is one of the best drivers of the current era, although it remains to be seen how he uses all that potential and experience to challenge Vettel in the ongoing Formula
1 championship.
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