On This Day, 10 Years Ago Jenson Button Wrote F1’s Best Comeback Story

Published 10/18/2019, 10:22 AM EDT

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In 2009, F1 bid adieu to Honda as a works team, leaving Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello without a drive. However, former Ferrari tactician, Ross Brawn stepped in and turned it into the Brawn GP team. In the process, he retained Button and Barrichello for the 2009 season.

With a massive rules overhaul, the pecking order was still up in the air, but nobody could predict what happened, come Australia. Gone was the McLaren and Ferrari strangle-hold in the championship race. Taking their place were Red Bull, and surprisingly, newcomers Brawn GP.

On the driver’s side of things, Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello bolted away, with Red Bull barely keeping up. In the second half of the season, Button and Barrichello’s dominance waned, giving the Bulls, some form of hope. Meanwhile, McLaren and Ferrari cleaned up their act to an extent

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However, the fledgling team built up enough of an advantage to complete the fairytale. Brawn GP became the first rookie team to win a world championship, with Jenson Button winning his maiden title. It all wrapped up nicely on 18th October 2019 at the Brazilian Grand Prix, as the veteran Briton celebrated.

Heading into the Brazilian Grand Prix that year, Mark Webber won the race for Red Bull. Joining him on the podium were Robert Kubica, in his heyday, and Lewis Hamilton. Although Sebastian Vettel ended the race in 4th, Button only needed 5th to secure the title.

Button used only one chassis over the course of the season, since most drivers change chassis several times. He drove that same chassis in every practice and qualifying session and race.

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In other words, he won the World Championship in the oldest car on the grid. To this day, it remains one of the best comeback stories, because he went from wondering about his future, to world champion.

via Imago

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Written by:

Dhruv George

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Dhruv George is a senior Formula One and NASCAR analyst for EssentiallySports, having authored nearly 12000 articles spanning different sports like F1, NASCAR, Tennis, NFL, and eSports. He graduated with a PG Diploma in Journalism from the Xavier Institute of Communications. Dhruv has also conducted interviews with F1 driver Pierre Gasly and Moto2 rider Tony Arbolino.
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