A phoenix called Brawn and a star called Button

You would have to be well over seventy years old to have witnessed anything in Formula One like we did this weekend. Never since the days of Juan Manuel Fangio has a brand new team entered Formula One and won its maiden Grand Prix. I watched qualifying on Saturday half in disbelief when it became clear that either of the two Brawn cars was going to take pole position. In the dying minutes of qualifying I was at the edge of my seat unsure whether the top place would be taken by Jenson Button or Rubens Barrichello. Finally Button managed to outpace his team-mate by the tiniest of margins and the stage was set for what was to be an epic Australian Grand Prix. “Hmm,” I thought, “something is afoot here.”

Good qualifying pace does not always translate itself into race wins. After all, we have seen teams going for glory on Saturday in the certain knowledge that they didn’t stand a hope of winning the race. Fernando Alonso did this a few times last year in his Renault knowing full well that his car was nowhere near as good as the McLarens, BMWs or Ferraris but making sure that at least his name caught some headlines. This is the game I reckoned Ross Brawn, the brains behind Brawn GP, to be playing: make a big splash on day one and have everybody remember the newcomers but accept the inevitability of leaving Melbourne without gaining a single point.

I could not have been more wrong. The Brawn cars were not playing any showbiz game. Oh no. They came to Australia prepared to do battle and wiped the circuit with the opposition. And what a corker of a race it turned out to be. This is what Formula One is supposed to be about. Crashes, daredevil overtaking manoeuvres, stomach churning pit-stops, Australia had it all yesterday. But other than the race itself proving to be about as thrilling a motor race as you ever get in dry conditions, yesterday was fairy tale stuff. Even the most hard-hearted, anti-English curmudgeon would not have begrudged Jenson Button his outstanding victory or Rubens Barrichello his worthy second place.

Brawn GP has proved to be the phoenix that has arisen from the ashes of Honda’s Formula One world. What is outstanding is that the team did not even exist a month ago. Jenson Button – once seen as the wonder boy of English Formula One pride – had pretty much kissed goodbye to his career. A career which began with flair at Williams had proceeded with the odd flash of brilliance at BAR and then Honda but never seemed any more than lacklustre. If ever there was a man to answer the eternal question “is it the car or is it the driver?”, that man has to be Jenson Button. Give Button the right car and he will drive it with abandon. Put him in what the South African brethren call a “skorogoro” and he will be found somewhere at the back of the field. Similarly, it does not matter whether you put Kazuki Nakajima in a Ferrari or a Williams, he will still crash it.

Thinking in the shower this morning, I felt like kicking myself. I should have known Honda would be very good this year because Ross Brawn announced in June last year that his team was not bothering any more with their 2008 car but concentrating instead on developing the 2009. Since Brawn is a Honda without the badge, it is clear that they had a massive head start. Now here is the galling bit: I KNEW THIS! Imagine if I had placed £10 on Jenson Button winning the Australian Grand Prix. I probably would have been given stupid odds like 150:1. Well, que sera sera, I suppose…

I have always had a soft spot for Button. He is a likeable chap and has excellent taste in women. His current squeeze, lingerie model Jacinta Michibata, is gorgeous and of interesting heritage - her mother is Japanese and her Argentine father is of Spanish and Italian ancestry. What with Nicole Scherzinger adorning the McLaren garage, it would appear that the age of the exotic Formula One WAG is upon us. Hang on to your hats boys, it looks like this is going to be a rollercoaster…

While it is true to say that given the right equipment Button will perform at least as well as the very best, the same cannot be said of Lewis Hamilton. It has been acknowledged by everyone, including the McLaren engineers, that this year’s car is a pile of shite. But it does not seem to matter what car you give this young lad to drive – he will still wring its neck. The McLarens simply did not have the qualifying pace of their rivals and – as if this wasn’t bad enough – the car was a nightmare to drive. Still, come race day, Hamilton fought the car – and his rivals – to end up third having started eighteenth on the grid. That is nothing short of amazing. Hamilton’s superlative achievement may have gone somewhat unnoticed in the euphoria surrounding the Brawn cars but in all fairness he was yesterday’s driver of the day. He has opened his 2009 championship bid with six very handy points. Given that he expected to leave Australia empty handed, this is superb.

I sat back at the end of yesterday’s race with a massive grin on my face. I couldn’t help thinking that day’s like yesterday are the reason we love this sport so much. It looks like this is going to be a good season!

Gitau30 March 2009