Jenson Button "isn’t inclined" to pay for a drive next season.
According to the Daily Mail, much of the 29-year-old’s three-year, £24 million with Honda will have to be paid up if Honda can’t find a new buyer in time for the start of the season in March.
A January 31st deadline for finding a backer has been and gone, so the future looks bleak for both driver and team.
The Mail believes that Sebastien Bourdais, not Button, is in pole position to land a driver’s vacancy at Toro Rosso as the Frenchman should have access to funds and a budget to pay for his seat during a time when motor racing is looking to cut costs.
F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has been helping Honda try to locate a buyer. He said at the weekend: "We are not pessimistic in the slightest. Nine teams won’t make any difference. It’s about drivers, not teams."
Written by James Christie
