Once again the McLaren-Brawn-Raikkonen tug of war is at full strength.
Wednesday of this week saw Kimi Raikkonen’s managers take a McLaren tour with Martin Witmarsh, while Friday saw the same for Button’s people.
Ross Brawn said earlier this week that Brawn GP were not prepared to meet Button’s salary demands. He added that they would be willing to negotiate a more flexible sponsor arrangement that allowed Jenson to have more freedom with his sponsors and the money he received from them.
Button’s manager, Richard Goddard, had this to say on the subject;
“As I’ve said many times before, Jenson wants to drive a car which is capable of winning the next world championship. We’ve been talking about possible terms for 2010 with Brawn for months and we’re not being difficult or unreasonably expensive in our demands for Jenson. In fact we’ve given up quite a lot of negotiating ground in our discussions with them.”
He also mentioned that he and Button’s “team” had not been asking for anything near the £10 that Hamilton and Alonso take home for their services, and they were actually asking for a little less than what Button was being paid when the team was Honda.
I struggle to understand what on earth Brawn GP are playing at. The season has ended and the reigning World Champion has not got a drive for the 2010 season. Unbelievable.
I am not Jenson Button’s biggest fan, but he was brilliant over the majority of the 09 season and he wrapped the title up and helped wrap the constructors title up with a race to spare and he has shown almost unwavering loyalty to the whole Brawn/Honda team.
In my opinon, the point is not the actual money. Brawn should be showing Button that they are grateful and appreciative of his efforts over the last season, and that they want him more than anyone else does. I understand that with the year Brawn GP have had and the cutbacks they have had to make that they can’t be throwing money around or over-spending in the media, but Jenson Button is their world champion and he deserves recognition.
