Button: Honda the place to be in 2009

With the Japanese manufacturer's current form limited by the fact they are focusing all their efforts on 2009, Button has little chance of battling at the front of the grid in the near future.

However, he is adamant that the efforts for next year will pay off and that being at Honda Racing is the right place for him.

"I don't think there is another team that any driver could drive for that is going to do a better job than this team next season," Button told autosport.com at Hockenheim. "You never know where Ferrari and McLaren are going to be.

"They have been very strong over the last few years, so you can't really count them out. And to get on their pace next year, here at Honda, is a big step forward. But with such a big rule change I think it's possible."

Honda Racing are privately targeting a swoop for Fernando Alonso, but the Spaniard is looking more and more likely to stay at Renault. Button believes other top line drivers may also be interested in joining the team next season.

"I think this is a good place to be and that is why I think I'm sure other top drivers in Formula One who aren't in a Ferrari or a McLaren would be interested in driving here next year.

"They know that Ross has achieved a lot in the past. For sure it is not just down to one man, but they know that he knows what it takes to be world champion. It's not like a driver knowing what it takes, because while he has his input, it's nowhere near as much as a technical director or a team principal.

"Ross is controlling the team very well and putting people in the right places to do their jobs correctly, and making sure that we are all working together as we should be. He knows the areas that we needed to improve in, which have improved in a lot already this season. So I have no worries about the team for the future."

Button has also admitted that had the team not secured the services of Brawn then he may well have walked away at the end of his contract, which expires this year.

"Last year I was pretty upset with the way things were going. I knew that something had to change or else I wasn't going to be happy here. The whole team realised that things needed to change, so they did.

"Employing someone like Ross is a massive change to the team and, for Honda to realise that we need someone like that, is a big thing also. It made everyone in the team realise how focussed Honda were.

"It wasn't just a marketing thing, having cars in F1. So it all changed around at the end of last year really and I was very positive about the future. But if it had stayed as it was then, for sure I wouldn't have been as positive.

"And it's not just Ross, there are some other great people in aerodynamics and engineering that we have added to our collection of very talented people we had already."