BAR Success will Prevent Button from a Williams Move

Briton Jenson Button has promised to do his best for BAR even if their success rules him out of a move to Formula One rivals Williams in 2006.

The 24-year-old had sought to return in 2005 to BMW-powered Williams, the team that gave him his Formula One debut in 2000, but BAR won a legal tug-of-war over his contract.

"If you want something and you don't get it of course you are not going to be 100 percent happy," Button said when asked about his situation at the launch of the team's new car in Barcelona on Sunday.

"But I'm here for 2005 and I've got to make the best of it. We're all working towards a good year, I'm going to do the best job I possibly can. We all want to have a great season."

Asked whether he still intended to go to Williams, the Briton added: "I'll wait until the end of the year until I start thinking about next season. We need to be focused for the whole year. I don't think Ferrari are going to win the championship, or anyone win the Championship, by September."

F1 Racing magazine recently reported that Button's contract with BAR contains a clause enabling Williams to claim him for 2006 if he has scored less than 70 percent of the Championship leader's points tally by July 31st.

BAR team boss Nick Fry confirmed that there was a points element to the contract but the team would do what they could do to retain his services.

"We have to achieve a certain level of performance," he said. "This comes down to a very simple thing - we have to give Jenson a car that befits his talent and if we do that and get the results, then we are very confident that he would want to be with us.

"The monkey's very much on our back to produce the goods. Because the target is relative to the leader of the Championship, if [Ferrari's] Michael [Schumacher] were to run away with the Championship it becomes very difficult."

The new regulations, particularly limiting drivers to one set of tyres for qualifying and the race, will reward those drivers who are able to conserve their tyres and think strategically.

Fry said Button, renowned as one of the smoother drivers on the starting grid, could have an advantage there.

"The tyres are going to be absolutely critical and I think Jenson is an ace of cards as regards to preserving the tyres," he said. "Jenson works very well with our team in particular, he's very demanding but we get on with him.

"For someone who is still relatively young, he is a mature person."