Jenson Button insists he is not looking to make a full-time return to Formula 1, with the Briton excited to make a one-off appearance for the McLaren Honda Formula 1 Team in this years’ Monaco Grand Prix.
Following the decision of Fernando Alonso to skip Monaco in order to compete in the 101st running of the Indianapolis 500 for Andretti Autosport, Button admitted it was too good an opportunity to turn down to race around the streets of Monte Carlo one more time, although he insists his full-time career in the sport has come to an end, feeling that he does not have the same kind of motivation he used to.
“When the chance came to race in Monaco, I was going to take it,” said Button to Sky Sports. “I don’t want to be racing in Formula 1 for a whole season because I’ve done my time in Formula 1. I’ve loved most of my career but it was time for me to have a break.
“But to come back for the Monaco Grand Prix, I mean that is just the dream for a racing driver; coming in for a one-off race, in Monaco, the most glamorous grand prix on the calendar, that excitement is back.”
Button’s first time in the MCL32 will be during free practice in Monaco after turning down the opportunity to test in the post-Bahrain Grand Prix test, but the Briton has spent some time in the simulator preparing for his first Grand Prix since the closing race of 2016 in Abu Dhabi.
“You jump into the simulator and after five laps there’s that, ‘OK, I’ve still got it then. I can still direct the car around the corners and I still know how to change gear and push the brake pedal and modulate the throttle.’” said Button. “That never leaves you.”
