Why Jenson Button is much happier now he's out of F1 for good
Channel: ABC SHOW
Date: 2018-06-17

LE MANS, France -- Jenson Button is a man invigorated by life away from Formula One.

After his debut in 2000, the Englishman completed 17 seasons in motorsport's premier category, which included in his crowning achievement: the 2009 world championship. That title and the move to McLaren which followed saw his best seasons in the sport as he claimed all but one of his 15 career victories in a four-season spell.
But the next four years were, at times, difficult to watch. His final F1 win, the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix, remains the last for McLaren. Button stayed with the team until 2016 as it fell further and further down the pecking order and the closer he got to his retirement, the more obvious it became he didn't want to be there. He will openly admit now he stayed in the championship for too long.

A year and a half later, as he prepares for his maiden Le Mans 24 Hours with Russian outfit SMP Racing, his demeanour is completely different to the man of late 2015 and all of 2016.

When asked how he's found life away from the F1 paddock, he flashes a big grin and tells ESPN: "It's been awesome. I've definitely done my years in F1 and stepping away was great, it was a good time for me to do it. Realistically, if I'd had the choice, I would have left half-way through the year [2016].

"I'm much happier as a person now, life is great, and I'm racing things I've always wanted to race in."

It's not difficult to see why. In the days before arriving at Le Mans, he and girlfriend Brittany Ward announced their engagement. On the driving side he's dovetailing his World Endurance Championship duties -- he has signed with SMP up for the rest of its 'Super Season', which runs until next year's Le Mans 24 Hours, meaning he is guaranteed at least two attempts at the famous race -- by fulfilling a long-held ambition to race in Super GT in Japan.