Button signs off with point

The former British F3 front-runner ran behind team-mate Jarno Trulli in the early stages as they chased Jordan's Takuma Sato, but moved ahead of the Italian when he suffered a technical problem after the first round of pit-stops.

"It's great to get a point for the team and for myself," said Button. "It has been an up and down season, but it has been good for my experience. It has been fun working with the team and I wish them all the best for next year."

Team boss Flavio Briatore expressed his delight at finishing fourth in the championship after any tenuous chance Sauber had of overhauling them was effectively scuppered by Felipe Massa crashing out of the race. However, he warned that Renault needs to up its game if it to challenge for higher honours next season.

"We are satisfied because we have fulfilled our objective for this year by securing fourth place in the Constructors' Championship. However, we are still too far behind the top teams and have to work very hard over the winter to close the gap."