By pitpass.com (16/02/2004)
February 16 2004

Lucky Strike BAR Honda star Jenson Button has pledged his loyalty to BAR, refuting talk that he is heading to WilliamsF1, or anyone else, for 2005. "People keep going on about the Williams drive and they are obviously an excellent team," he told British tabloid the Sunday Mirror. "They gave me my first chance in Formula One, but I have had no contact with them and I'm genuinely not looking to leaving BAR.

"Of course the world championship is my ambition," he continued. "But I want to do it with a team I have helped build. We are building something here, and we hope to be challenging for the title next year. If we do achieve that, it will mean far more to me than if I'd walked straight into a team that guaranteed me a winning car."

Quite how Jacques Villeneuve, who spent (some would say wasted) five years with the British team, feels about Button's comments that he helped build the team remain to be seen. However, following the team's decision not to renew the Canadian's contract, Button becomes the new team leader, and many are unsure as to whether he's up to the job, indeed many believe his F1 future depends on what happens in the coming season.

"Jacques was very good because he said what he thought, but I can be tough and forthright when I have to be," says the Englishman. "When constructive criticism is needed I can give it, and take it. Now I'm expected to give even more to the team and I'm relishing the role."

The youngster, who has yet to visit the F1 podium, then took careful aim at comments made by double World Champion Mika Hakkinen recently: "I suppose Mika's got nothing else to do now he's retired. He seems to have had a go at just about everybody except Kimi Raikkonen.

"That doesn't bother me at all," he continued. "I've got far more important things to think about. The season starts in Australia in three weeks and we have a lot more work to get through before then. We need to make real progress this year."

This article was written by pitpass.com and is used with permission.