How Button has rattled Hamilton's cage

"There have been just two exceptional drivers this year," a team boss (whose identity shall remain secret but you can be assured that his outfit has won both races and championships in recent years) threw my way during a conversation in Singapore last weekend.

"Sebastian and Jenson. They have been simply brilliant this year. No one would have guessed before the season that it would be like that, especially for Jenson. Giving Lewis overtaking lessons at Monza - great job."

During a 2011 campaign that has been dominated by one man, it's been hard to appreciate some of the intra-team battles that have been going on behind that Red Bull Racing RB7 - and especially the quiet revolution that's been going on inside McLaren.

For the time when Lewis Hamilton had it all his own way at McLaren, either as the darling of the team during that turbulent year alongside Fernando Alonso, or as simply the team leader - and world champion - when up against Heikki Kovalainen, has now gone.

McLaren had very much become Team Lewis Hamilton, which was why the world and his dog was so sceptical about the wisdom of Button's decision to jump ship from Brawn GP at the end of 2009 and take on, in the same car, someone regarded at the time as the 'fastest' man in F1.

Button has been very strong this year © sutton-images.com

And throughout 2010, things turned out only marginally better than many people suspected. Button had the maturity and intelligence to pull off those great wet victories in Australia and China, but on a whole he did not have the raw speed to be able to topple Hamilton.

Yet, while the results may not have shown it clearly, behind the scenes big inroads were being made. Button was getting used to his new environment, relishing the fact that he was driving for a team that loved him, and steadily beginning to get a car and a team organisation that suited him better.

That positive environment he found himself in when in the cockpit was mirrored by the happy place he found himself in off the track. Team Button - his father John, trainer Mikey 'muscles' Collier, manager Richard Goddard, girlfriend Jessica Michibata, and close friends Chris Buncombe and Richard Williams - have delivered him an amazing comfort zone off-track.

Mellowed too by the fact that his lifetime ambition of winning the world championship had been achieved - so there is no desperation to go out there and nail it, as everything he achieved in F1 now is a bonus - Button is simply buzzing off positive energy.

"I am happy with the thing that I am sat in at the moment and that makes a big difference to me," said Button in Singapore last weekend. "I have really worked with the team to develop the car in a direction that I am really happy with, and it is really starting to pay off so I am really happy with that."

Pushed on why the car direction was not good for him last year, he said: "I still felt good in the car and had some pretty good races, but when the car is in one direction it takes time to change it around to what you like. Every time I am in simulator we work on new things for the future, it is not just change a few things here or there. It is something we are working on together, and it will help Lewis and myself in the future."

Keep in mind that last comment.

Button, happier than ever at McLaren © sutton-images.com

All this work, in the environment that he has created around him, has helped Button deliver the kind of performance that we witnessed in Singapore last weekend. Quick, consistent, error-free and assured, our mystery team boss was right in saying that the Briton has been up there with Vettel in being supreme this year.

And, as the world tries to seek answers for what has gone wrong with Lewis Hamilton this year, perhaps our first port of call should not be his mental state, lifestyle or influence of his new management team. Instead, perhaps we should be looking at Button.

Hamilton is a fiercely competitive individual, and is as demanding of himself as he is of all those around him. In his mind he is the best, so give him the right equipment and a fair crack at the whip and he knows he can deliver race wins and world championships. No question.

To cement his view: he has always been the man in the team who has come up trumps. Look at Formula Renault, F3, GP2 and F1 - barring those years when he has been a rookie, Hamilton has been a de facto number one.

Now, for the first time in his career, he has found himself up alongside someone who is emerging as a genuine threat, and could end the year ahead of him in the world championship. Surely that's hard to deal with. And the more it goes on, the greater the frustration, and the more chance of getting beaten again.

There is another factor at play here too - for Hamilton genuinely gets on well with Button - which actually makes things harder for him to deal with than if they were at each other's throat.

Psychologically, as a sportsman, it is much easier to be able to dig deep and find the motivation to beat someone if you dislike them; to get your mindset tuned so that deep down you find an ingrained motivation to get out there and rub your enemy's face in the sand.

Just look at Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel last year on the days when their rivalry heated up - and how especially Webber found something extra when things were stacked against him. Silverstone is your prime example.

Hamilton and Button get along very well © sutton-images.com

How much more difficult is it to face an arch-rival who is all smiles to you, who you genuinely like and who does everything he can to help you? How much more annoying is it when that man you so like also has the same car as you, and is going out there and doing a better job?

This is not to say that the way Hamilton can make things better is to start hating Button, but if he can understand the reasons for his frustrations then that would go some way to sorting them out.

Look to the explanations for why Button is doing so well. Look at how Button thrives from having friends around him, and keep the faith in your talent.

Button and Vettel have been fantastic this year, but that is no reason to feel down. Form is temporary. Class is permanent. Let's see who our team boss is praising in 12 months' time...