Jenson Button wins his 200th Grand Prix start

Jenson Button’s 200th Grand Prix began on a wet track, moved onto slick tyres, returned briefly to rain and produced 88 pit stops across the field. It was exactly the sort of race in which Button’s calm judgement turned changing conditions into a competitive advantage.

Button had taken his first Formula 1 victory at the Hungaroring in similarly wet conditions five years earlier. By 2011 he was a world champion and a McLaren race winner, but team-mate Lewis Hamilton had carried the stronger form into Hungary and started second behind Sebastian Vettel. Button lined up third.

From intermediates to slicks

The field started on intermediate tyres. Hamilton passed Vettel for the lead, while Button also moved ahead of the Red Bull and remained close to his team-mate as the track dried.

Repeated stops followed as drivers searched for the correct crossover point. Button’s pace on slicks brought him into the fight for victory, while Hamilton’s race became increasingly complicated. A spin cost the leader time, and his attempt to rejoin brought a drive-through penalty.

Late rain created the decisive choice. Hamilton stopped for another set of intermediate tyres, expecting the shower to strengthen. Button stayed on slicks. The rain passed quickly, leaving Hamilton with another stop to make and Button in control.

A milestone with substance

Button finished 3.588 seconds ahead of Vettel, with Fernando Alonso third. Hamilton recovered to fourth. The victory was Button’s second of the season and the 11th of his career.

The occasion mattered because it joined a round number to a race that displayed the central strength of Button’s driving. He did not simply survive changeable conditions. He interpreted grip, tyre temperature and the likely duration of the rain more accurately than the rivals around him.

The result also helped establish his strongest McLaren season. Button won again in Japan, finished runner-up to Vettel in the championship and became the first team-mate to outscore Hamilton over a full Formula 1 season.

Two hundred starts can be a celebration of endurance. At the Hungaroring, Button made the milestone competitive by winning a race that required a new decision almost every time the weather changed its mind.