Button looks to dispel the doubters with show of class

For a young man in only his third season of Formula One, Britain's Jenson Button has endured more than his share of the game's tangled emotions.

Rave reviews have been swiftly pursued by contrary critiques and threats to his job. This season, his second with Renault, has followed the routine pattern, keeping the pressure on him as he embarks upon his home Grand Prix at Silverstone tomorrow.

Not that you would know it from his demeanour. He remains seemingly unflappable, shrugging off the latest speculation about his future with a grin and the claim: "It would be boring knowing what I'm going to do next year."

Button was unsure until just before the start of the 2000 World Championship whether he would be making his Formula One debut, for Williams BMW. He was barely 20. He made an instant impact and was hailed as a potential world champion, but by the middle of the season it became clear he was not assured of his seat.

Williams duly summoned another driver from their extended stable, Juan Pablo Montoya, to replace Button, who was released "on loan" to Benetton Renault. Button toiled for much of last year, rallying towards its end and surviving despite the apparent dissatisfaction of the team principal, Flavio Briatore.

A winter's "bonding" session of drivers and trainers at Briatore's homestead in Kenya served as a fresh start for Button. A much-improved car, now a fully-fledged Renault, provided him with the equipment he craved. The response was impressive and Briatore led the acclaim.

But then a run of four races without a point and improved driving by his new team-mate, Jarno Trulli, changed the picture yet again. Suddenly the paddock whispers were back on stream and this time the message was that Button would lose his place to Renault's test driver, the Spaniard, Fernando Alonso, who happened to be managed by Briatore.

Button, conscious of the danger, began to check out his options. Jaguar had long been keen to recruit him. Toyota and BAR Honda have also emerged as prospective employers.

None of these teams, however, offer the shorter term potential of Renault, much less that of Williams, who retain the right to first call on his services but are expected to persist with Montoya and Ralf Schumacher.

Button could be condemned to a role towards the back of the grid while other young hot-shots advance their causes, yet he refuses to be deflated by any actual or perceived rejection, maintaining that his conviction and ambition are undiminished.

"My confidence has not taken a knock at all," he insists. "It is always there, as strong as ever. It's not a case of here we go again this year. It's not a matter of if I'm going to be in Formula One next year, but where I'm going to be. That's a positive situation to be in.

"There are a lot of young drivers around but I certainly don't worry that I might not be good enough to keep up with them. There's no one out there that I fear I can't beat.

"My team-mate is one of the best on the grid, especially in terms of speed, so I'm not worried about anyone at all. He's very professional and we're very close on the grid. I thought, like many other people, that Jarno was better in qualifying than in the races, but he has been going well in the races as well. He's a good team-mate, and it's good for the team that he's also brought some points in."

Trulli has brought in four points, six fewer than Button, and there are factions at Renault who say they would much rather work with the accommodating Englishman than the peevish Italian. However, Trulli, too, is managed by Briatore and "commercial forces" are evidently weighing against Button.

Some sources indicate that Renault have already made up their minds and that Button's name will be absent from the line-up they are due to announce, after the British Grand Prix. If that is not the case then he hopes his performance at Silverstone will tilt the verdict in his favour. If the die is cast then he can at least embarrass them.

"I like Silverstone, I know the circuit well and I've generally gone well there," Button says. "It would be the perfect place and occasion to get my first podium finish. That's asking a lot and certainly a win looks out of the question, but if things go our way it is possible we could make the first three.

"It's been so much better this year. You don't like racing when you can see 10 cars in front of you. It's so much better racing at the front, being able to see a Ferrari and wishing you could be even closer to it. We're getting there, although McLaren have got half a second ahead of us now."

Renault challenged McLaren Mercedes for third place in the Constructors Championship earlier in the season, only for the former champions to counter with a sequence of results that included victory at Monaco.

Button was briefly Britain's leading driver, but David Coulthard, McLaren's winner at the principality, has reasserted himself. Not that either driver is motivated by domestic rankings.

"It's really not important to be the top Brit," Button said. "What I want to be is the top driver in the World. That was my target when I started and it still is. If I come third at Silverstone and DC comes second it won't spoil the day for me. It won't make any difference at all."

Button has joined Coulthard and a number of other tax exiles in Monaco but relishes a return to his home track and the bosom of a loyal fan club.

"Apart from the fact that I enjoy living in Monaco it has helped me because the weather makes it a good place for training all the year round," Button said.

"But it's certainly good to come back to England. The fans are always very supportive and understanding.

"Even last year, which was my worst race there, they were right behind me. It was quite amazing. They knew I didn't have the equipment to do the job and could see why it wasn't the best of weekends for me. Now I'm looking forward to giving them the best race of my career at Silverstone."

Better still, he believes, will come his way in the future no matter what decision Renault have in store for him.

"What I definitely do know is that Formula One is where I belong. I love the racing and Formula One is the place to be. I intend to be around here for some time yet."

Jenson Button: Fact file

Name: Jenson Button.

Born: Frome, Somerset, 19 Jan 1980.

Career: Won RAC British Open Championship in 1992 (karting).

Won Italian ICA Senior Karting in1995, and came second in the World Formula A Championship.

In 1999 won Rookie of the Year Award. Signed for BMW-Williams F1 team in 2000. Following year joined Renault.

Best Grand Prix qualifying position: 3rd (Belgium GP 2000).

Best Grand Prix Finish: 4th (German GP 2000, Malaysian GP 2002, Brazil GP 2002).

Best Drivers' Championship finish: 8th (BMW-Williams, 2000).

Did you know? Button failed his driving test at his first attempt. Hobbies include mountain biking and body boarding. John Button, Jenson's father, was a successful rallycross driver during the 1970s.

They say: "There is still some maturing for Jenson to do, but every year that goes by he is getting stronger and better." Damon Hill (2002).

He says: "When you've sat on the grid at a grand prix and you've seen those lights go, there is nothing in the world to touch that feeling."