The slender man appeared magnanimous with his comedic personality prior to the interview as we exchanged a few jokes before hand.
His smile says it all, showcasing a level of confidence above all that says he’s feeling like a million dollars (although he’s worth much more than that), but ultimately he looked ready to take on the tough weekend ahead of him as he lines up on the grid for the 300th time.
But with Button’s recent announcement that he’ll be taking a year off from the sport next year (2017) and the end of the F1 season closing in by the end of November, we can only imagine the real excitement deep within him.
What’s going to happen next year?
Well, I won’t be racing next year and my aim was to have a year out of the sport. I might still be at a couple of races or doing stuff on the simulator. Whatever it is, I’m always there to help develop the car and the team as a whole, but I’ll mainly be away having fun, living my life by my schedule and training hard.
I’m definitely going to spend time with my family and that includes my friends. I spend so much time away from home, I probably get to see them five or six times a year and four of those times are at races. But I’m not the same person when I’m at a race because I’ll be very focused - in a way selfish. Last year was the first time in five years I got to spend Christmas with them so it’ll be quite nice to spend my time with them next year.
With more time on your hands, what are your plans?
I would definitely be looking for my next race in a triathlon, I really love the sport. For me it’s something I’ve done for the last eight years and it was something that I could really sink my teeth into by training for and be competitive in. So the aim for next year will be to up my game and qualify for the world championships, which I’ve done a couple of times, but this time I can hopefully get to go as well.
What about racing on your free time?
I might also still go racing, I’m not too sure just yet. Maybe in rally cross, Super GT or even karting, but whatever the case may be, I’ll only do it if I think its going to be fun.
What’s your fixation on competing in a triathlon?
It’s mentally very tough. It’s not just a physical thing and I think it prepared my very well for Formula One. It also took my mind off the bad races I had previously. But more importantly it’s the competition. People always say beating your own time is the most important thing, but for me it’s not. It’s beating everyone else (laughter).
Which part of competing in a triathlon do you enjoy the most?
It changes all the time, but the bit I enjoy the most would be cycling and I’ve trained a lot with other racing drivers, MotoGP riders, pro-cyclists in Monaco where I live, like Alex Wurz for instance. It’s a good group of people with lots of stories that we have of each other and it also keeps you fit at the same time.
And just like that our ten minutes was up with the Briton, who went on to finish the 2016 Formula 1 Malaysia Grand Prix in ninth position collecting two points, while his team mate Fernando Alonso managed to secure seventh, adding six points to the tally.
Button currently holds 15 points, placing him in 15th place within the driver’s standings, while the team resides in sixth place within the constructors’ championship with 62 points.
