Close menu

Jenson Button: McLaren could drop Briton for Stoffel Vandoorne in 2017

By Andrew BensonChief F1 writer in Monaco

Last updated on .From the section Formula 1comments204

Jenson Button celebrates his last race win in 2012
Button has been at McLaren since 2010 but his last win for the British team came at the 2012 Brazil GP

McLaren have indicated they are likely to drop Jenson Button and replace him with Stoffel Vandoorne next season.

Button, 36, is out of contract at the end of the year, while Vandoorne, McLaren's reserve driver, is one of the hottest properties without a race seat.

McLaren chairman Ron Dennis said the 24-year-old Belgian was "an integral part of McLaren-Honda's future".

He added: "Any team that imagines they may be able to poach him is very much mistaken."

Two-time world champion Fernando Alonso is contracted to McLaren to the end of 2017 so Button and Vandoorne are essentially in competition for the remaining seat.

Dennis said McLaren were "not yet ready to commit or communicate" on their 2017 line-up, but added: "You may rest assured that Stoffel is not for sale."

A man in high demand

Stoffel Vandoorne
Stoffel Vandoorne joined McLaren's young driver programme in 2013 and won the GP2 Series title with ART Grand Prix in 2015

Reigning GP2 champion Vandoorne deputised for the injured Alonso at last month's Bahrain Grand Prix, out-qualifying Button before finishing 10th on his grand prix debut.

Dennis added: "Stoffel is an extremely talented, intelligent and hard-working young driver, with an enormous amount of potential and who, importantly, knows how to win."

Renault are known to be interested in Vandoorne for next season.

Their racing director Frederic Vasseur ran him in his teams in the GP2 and Formula Renault 3.5 feeder categories and rates him highly.

But McLaren have Vandoorne under a contract this year that prevents him signing for another team until a specific date in the autumn, believed to be around the end of September or beginning of October.

Where does this leave Button?

Jenson Button
Could Jenson Button rejoin Williams, the team that gave him his first F1 drive in 2000?

Button does have other options to extend his F1 career into an 18th season should McLaren decide not to keep him.

Williams are known to be interested in him as a potential replacement for Brazilian Felipe Massa, who is likely to be dropped at the end of the season.

Finn Valtteri Bottas is said by insiders to be under contract for another season.

There are also seats potentially available at both Mercedes and Ferrari, where Nico Rosberg and Kimi Raikkonen are out of contract at the end of the season.

However, Mercedes are expected to agree a deal for championship leader Rosberg to stay within the next few weeks and would anyway be unlikely to sign a driver who turns 37 next January.

Ferrari will not make a decision on their 2017 partner for Sebastian Vettel until August but are likely to retain Raikkonen for at least another season.

Jenson Button
Jenson Button won the 2009 world title with Brawn GP

Comments

Join the conversation

These comments are now closed.

204 comments

  • Comment posted by D1679475387685, at 07:58 27 May 2016

    6 years at McLaren, never got them a WDC, but did out score LH in the 3 years they spent together there. (672 to 657 points if you were wondering.)

    Would be nice if his career started and ended with Williams tbh. That'd be 17 years in F1, not bad at all. Thanks for flying our flag JB.

  • Comment posted by OxfordUnitedFan, at 00:48 27 May 2016

    I loved F1 about 10 years ago, just before the invasive rule changes and pay TV cartel ownership.

    Now articles like this make me sad, because I can tell I would genuinely have been excited about this when I used to watch F1.

    Maybe one day F1 will be watchable again.

  • Comment posted by Terra_Penthcyan, at 07:35 27 May 2016

    JB has had a good career, made the most of it when he had the car under him and won the world championship, and has kept a few world champion team mates honest over the years.

    I think teams however are looking at the likes of Verstappen and hoping to win the driver lottery without paying the wages of the old guard. I expect a lot of changes over the next couple of seasons.

  • Comment posted by hawkington, at 07:41 27 May 2016

    Great driver. Great ambassador for the sport. Great career. Well respected. Need not say anymore. Though it would be nice to see him presenting F1 on TV.

  • Comment posted by Number9, at 02:10 27 May 2016

    Will be sad to see Button go if that happens. Would love to see him stay with another team but he needs to do what's best for him.

    Vandoorne really impressed in Bahrain I thought, so he's a great asset for McLarens future. They've shown encouraging progress this year, let's hope they can build on that and be a top three or four team by next year.

  • Comment posted by Danny Smith, at 02:29 27 May 2016

    Sad to see Button go, as he has been a very good driver for McLaren, but then again I'm not surprised. Like with Verstappen at Red Bull, McLaren has to think about their future and secure a potential WDC in Vandoorne. They're already battling, thanks to their engine, so the last thing they need is having Vandoorne snapped up by one of the other teams such as Ferrari, Williams, or someone else

  • Comment posted by User0103235604, at 11:24 27 May 2016

    This is a non story. however....

    Jules Bianchi - solid racing driver, terrible accident and awful for his family to have to deal with.
    Can it really be true though that they are going to sue? really??
    FIA not focused on safety!!!! just ask Fernando after he climbed out of his car in Australia.
    Why have money and law courts become de rigeur for dealing with grief. Justice? Please...

  • Comment posted by Dussle, at 09:48 27 May 2016

    I really don't get the people that log on here to say 'F1 isn't what is used to be'. There are so many good drivers, interesting races and events at the moment. Youngest winner ever? Most successful English driver ever? Most world champions on a grid? All happening now. Anyway, JB is one of the most underrated drivers ever - world champ, beat LH and won Canada 2011, which is the best race ever!

  • Comment posted by ppuj, at 16:10 27 May 2016

    Ron Dennis is the master at de motivating his workers. Good one old boy

  • Comment posted by Ferret, at 08:35 27 May 2016

    Another piece of guesswork journalism from the BBC sports desk. How about trying to report on ACTUAL news rather than this sort of drivel. On the positive side, it is the first article this week that doesn't refer to Man Utd or Jose Mourinho :-)

  • Comment posted by RightSaidGeoff, at 08:38 27 May 2016

    Understandable McLaren are looking to the future, but really feel sorry for Jenson and Alonso, spending several years in an uncompetitive car and the improvement's coming too late. Very frustrating and both of them deserved so much better.

  • Comment posted by User0231937954, at 08:52 27 May 2016

    17. Zippy

    Erm, the current world champion is British.

    If all the Brits involved in F1 (drivers, engineers, mechanics, team bosses, race directors, Bernie(!)) suddenly disappeared, there wouldn't be much left.

    Not to mention that most of the teams are based here.

    We're all embarrassed that you're British and so silly

  • Comment posted by Osiris, at 11:09 27 May 2016

    "Hey, Jenson. Thanks for sticking with us and these shocking cars we've given you over the years! By the way, your present chronological situation is entirely sub-optimal and you will no longer be providing the human-computer interface portion of the McLaren automotive sporting appliance. We feel compelled to use someone totally unproven and overrated to develop the car now"

    Kind Regards,
    Ron

  • Comment posted by User0710622880, at 14:32 27 May 2016

    Interviewer - 'Jenson what do you think about Vandoorme getting a drive next year?' Jenson - 'It'll be great to have him as a team mate ' would be a great answer

  • Comment posted by User0030250603, at 10:56 27 May 2016

    I'd miss button if he was no longer part of F1. He always comes across so well, no matter how well or badly things have gone. A propper gent.

  • Comment posted by TONY L, at 16:00 27 May 2016

    give jb a decent car and I would put him against anyone on the grid today without a doubt.

  • Comment posted by User0766887094, at 07:19 27 May 2016

    @19 i don't think the mcclaren managerment are too exciting themselves with the useless cards they produce.

    McClaren are the newcastle united of F1, big in name only. Jensons one of the best drivers of his generation, pity he's wasted years in a poor team.

  • Comment posted by Allan Bayman, at 07:28 27 May 2016

    Nothing like being positive Zippy ! JB has made it to a level few people from anywhere have, that in itself is a major achievement. OK he might not be at the pinnacle of his career but he is well respeocted not just as a driver but someone who is able to work as part of a team and help develop the car. I do agree he may struggle to stay in F1 with other younger, hungrier driviers waiting to get in

  • Comment posted by U16529875, at 08:56 27 May 2016

    Getting rid of 'Button' would be just idiotic. Highly experienced and a former world champion.

    Ron Dennis really is an egotistical fraud. Can't stand the bloke.....

  • Comment posted by User0231937954, at 13:51 27 May 2016

    Dear fellow license fee payers

    Chief F1 writer Andrew Benson sends us this FROM MONACO.

    He thanks us for paying for his jolly.

    Hands up if you think you could do his job AND Phil McNulty's in the football section.

Top Stories

Elsewhere on the BBC