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Featured Sport News

Button eyes home success

Author: Sir David Smith
Date: 19/06/2009

Brawn GP's domination of the 2009 Formula One season sees them arrive home for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone full of confidence.

Englishman Jenson Button has won six of the seven races so far this season and will be hoping to continue his amazing run of form in front of a passionate home support.

Button's only failure to secure victory this season came in China, where Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel was the master in the rain, but the Brawn ace responded to that setback with four wins in a row.

Victories in Bahrain, Spain, Monaco and Turkey have shown Button's car to be supreme on several different types of track and the chasing pack must be giving up hope of competing with Brawn.

Button already holds a 26-point lead in the drivers' standings over team-mate Rubens Barrichello and looks all but certain to succeed compatriot Lewis Hamilton as world champion.

Vettel and Red Bull colleague Mark Webber have been the only drivers to challenge Brawn's dominance and last time out in Turkey they finished second and third behind Button.

German Vettel also took pole position in Istanbul, but was unable to hold off Button on the first lap and could not recover fully from that setback.

Toyota started the season in fine style, but have been off the pace in recent races, with Jarno Trulli's third place, from pole position, in Bahrain their last podium finish.

Ferrari appear to have made some progress since the campaign began, but Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen are still some way away from challenging for race wins.

Hamilton and McLaren number two, Heikki Kovalainen, continue to struggle towards the wrong end of the field, with problems in qualifying ensuring that there is little chance of race success.

Another former world champion, Fernando Alonso, has also had to grow accustomed to a place in midfield obscurity.

All of which points to more glory for Button, or possibly Barrichello, but the Englishman is wary of getting too carried away.

He recently stated: "You can't take it for granted and you've got to keep pushing."

Button is determined to impress on home soil, as he finally takes to the Silverstone track in a car capable of victory.

He added: "Going there this year is obviously a different situation, I'm leading the championship.

"In previous years, when the car has been difficult to drive and we haven't had any results, you're a little bit embarrassed because you've got so much support."

Button has yet to even finish on the podium at the British Grand Prix and has been forced to retire in two of the last three years, but will have high hopes of doing much better this weekend when he starts as sports betting favourite to clinch his seventh win of the campaign.

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