motor sports

Jenson Button was just another mid-field driver until he made the most of an opportunity in 2009, when Brawn GP produced a championship-winning car. The British driver, with a drivers' title to his name, proved to his critics that he was a force to reckon with, a fact that McLaren recognised and signed him the following year. At the British team, Button was able to display all that he had to offer particularly his ability to make a call in races in changeable conditions. His first win in Formula 1 came in 2006, after he had contested in more than a hundred Grands Prix, and despite the lows in the following two years, he laboured on to prove his point. In more than a decade in the sport, Button has had spurts of brilliance, particularly in 2004 when he emerged as the only non-Ferrari driver that could come anywhere close to Michael Schumacher's dominant run. His race strategies above all came into the limelight when in the 2011 Canadian Grand Prix, he powered through from the back of the grid to clinch a phenomenal victory, despite heading into the pit lane six times, which included a penalty and even repairs. His stint at McLaren has always been in question especially since he had stepped into the den of Lewis Hamilton, but in 2011, he proved that wrong as well. Button finished second in the championship and ensured that Hamilton was beaten - for the first time - in the standings by a teammate. In 2012, he embarks on his third year with McLaren and will aim to continue to prove his critics that he is certainly a well-settled and will remain as a title contender.