Button insists he is not ready to start helping Hamilton in title bid
31 August, 2012
Jenson Button with McLaren engineers in the team’s pit garage at Spa
Aug.31 (Reuters) Jenson Button argued that it is not time for him to support team-mate Lewis Hamilton’s title bid, as he himself still has title ambitions despite being 88 points adrift of the top spot in the 2012 points standings with nine races remaining.
Speaking during Thursday’s FIA press conference, the 2009 World Champion said that his situation did not yet warrant him abandoning a 2012 championship bid.
With nine races remaining, and a potential 225 points on offer, Button’s 76 points places him seventh in the standings, 88 points behind championship leader Fernando Alonso. Button’s McLaren team-mate is better placed, Hamilton having 41 points more than Button for a total of 117.
“You’d say I’m going to give up fighting for the Championship just because I’m 40 points behind my team-mate?” asked Button rhetorically. “Lewis is 40 points behind Fernando and I think he thinks he’s got a very good chance of winning this Championship, so no, we go racing as always and try to do the best job we can.”
McLaren were the form team going into the August break with Button finishing second in Germany, followed by a win for Hamilton in Hungary. “We definitely come here positive [that] we can get a good result, so no, that [team orders] is definitely not the situation. We want to get as many points for ourselves but also for the team.”
Meanwhile GMM reports that Hamilton insists that he doesn’t want help from his teammate to win the 2012 title.
“Jenson drives for the team and for himself,” he is quoted in Belgium by Auto Motor und Sport.
“I want to beat my rivals on the track, not because someone has let me past. That’s not my approach and I would never ask for it,” said Hamilton.
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- Button not ready to help Hamilton in title bid
- Whitmarsh: Our car is good enough to win races and the title
- Hamilton: I’m in the battle for the title and there’s still a long way to go
- Melbourne Practice 1: Button quickest from Hamilton
- Hamilton: I feel more relaxed and ready for new season than ever before
