S11 E1: Button's debut F1 season
Bring Back V10s - Classic F1 stories
The Race Media Ltd
4.9 • 764 Ratings
🗓️ 2 January 2025
⏱️ 68 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Bring Back V10s returns for its 11th season, and we're kicking things off with an in-depth look back at Jenson Button's first F1 season with Williams in 2000, with the help of Mark Hughes and ex-Williams insider Jim Wright, alongside host Glenn Freeman.
There's lots of behind-the-scenes stories all the way from how Button got into the frame for the Williams drive, the shootout test against Bruno Junqueira that earned him the seat, and what was really going on inside Williams with Juan Pablo Montoya being readied to replace Button for 2001.
On track we look at the highs and lows of Button's season, from almost scoring points from the back of the grid on his debut, to standout performances at F1's classic circuits like Silverstone, Spa and Suzuka, as well as the times he excelled in mixed conditions - just as he would over the rest of his F1 career.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The Athletic |
| 0:02.0 | As F1 entered the new millennium a quarter of a century ago, a new star emerged. |
| 0:16.3 | Plupped from Formula 3 after just two years of car racing, future world champion Jensen Button had to win |
| 0:22.3 | an old school shootout to get a drive with Williams for 2000. He made a strong impression |
| 0:27.3 | during that first season that was hailed as a future megastar, yet he never raced for the team |
| 0:32.7 | that gave him his big break again beyond that first year. The story of his rookie season is packed with |
| 0:39.5 | twists and turns, which makes it the perfect chunky topic for us to kick off season 11 of |
| 0:45.0 | Bring Back V10s with. As always, I'm your host, Glenn Freeman, and joining me to look back |
| 0:50.4 | on Jensen Button's first year in F1. We have Mark Hughes, and to give us the perspective |
| 0:55.5 | from inside Williams at that time, I'm delighted to welcome back the team's former commercial |
| 1:00.9 | chief, Jim Wright. Jim, it's great to have you back on the show. Listeners may recall you joined |
| 1:06.7 | us for the Alex Zanardi 1999 episode, And I remember straight after we finished that recording, |
| 1:13.3 | you said, if we ever do |
| 1:14.7 | Jensen Button 2000, we had to bring |
| 1:16.8 | you back. So let's |
| 1:18.7 | have you kick off the new series for |
| 1:20.7 | us by telling us when you think back |
| 1:22.8 | to Jensen's rookie season |
| 1:24.8 | in F1, what's the first thing that comes |
| 1:26.8 | to mind? Yeah, thank you, Glenn, and thank you, Mark. the first thing that comes to mind? |
| 1:29.4 | Yeah, thank you, Glenn, and thank you, Mark. |
| 1:33.2 | The first thing that comes to mind is the Zanardi situation, |
... |
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