Button wants Schumacher's crown

A lot of drivers would probably be glad to see Michael Schumacher hang up his helmet but Jenson Button wants the six-time champion to stick around so he can take his crown. Winning the title is, of course, the ambition of everyone on the grid but ...

A lot of drivers would probably be glad to see Michael Schumacher hang up his helmet but Jenson Button wants the six-time champion to stick around so he can take his crown. Winning the title is, of course, the ambition of everyone on the grid but for Button it would be even better to defeat the current era's most successful driver. But with or without Schumacher's presence, the Englishman wants that title.

Jenson Button.

Photo by Dave Dyer.

"I want to win while he's still driving, otherwise people will say I could only win because he wasn't around," Button told the UK's Sunday People. "Then again, there is always going to be a new fast driver coming through. But if you win a world championship with or without Michael involved you're bloody good because it is a difficult thing to do. It will be a dream for me to win the world title. It's the only reason I'm in F1."

BAR has been putting in some strong performances in winter testing and Button believes this season the British fans will have reason to get excited "We've done a lot of winter testing and compared to other teams I think we're ready for it," he said. "British fans are going to have something to shout about because I'm going to give it to them."

"It's great for the fans and I want to repay them for their support with some good results. We need a little more time to make a car that is quick enough to challenge for the title but that time is not far off."

"If we don't score a podium this season then something has gone severely wrong. They are the stepping stones for us. The first goal is a podium, then a win and finally the championship. I've been in F1 for quite a while now and the chance of wins and championships isn't going to faze me. It's exciting me that the chance for a shot at the championship is edging closer. It's what I have always dreamed of."

Button is one of the drivers on Williams' wish list to replace Juan Pablo Montoya next year. Jenson is contracted to BAR until 2006 and while he insists he is staying put, he takes it as a compliment that other team bosses have remarked on his performances.

"All this talk about me moving in 2005 hasn't changed the way that I've worked or feel because people can say what they want," he remarked. "It's actually quite flattering when Ron Dennis (McLaren) and Frank Williams have something good to say about you. I've had it hard over the last few years. Now I can finally challenge the top three teams people will sit up and start listening."