Jenson Button says returning to F1 for the Monaco GP is a “dream” any driver would want to live, despite feeling as though he has “done my time” in the sport.
Six months after beginning what is still expected to lead to a full F1 retirement, Button will make what stands as a one-off return with McLaren in Monaco later this month while Fernando Alonso competes at the Indianapolis.
Speaking in an interview with Ted Kravitz which will air in Sky Sports, Button says he could not turn down the request and that his “excitement” is now building.
“Of course when the chance came to race in Monaco I was going to take it,” said Button at McLaren’s Woking headquarters.
“I don’t want to be racing in Formula 1 for a whole season because I’ve done my time in Formula 1. I’ve loved most of my career, but it was time for me to have a break. But to come back for the Monaco Grand Prix, that is just the dream for a racing driver.
“Coming in for a one-off race in Monaco, the most glamorous grand prix on the calendar, that excitement is back. It comes back when you do a one-off race.”
Button and McLaren decided against the 37-year-old driving the MCL32 for the first time at the Bahrain test last month, with the 2009 world champion instead working on the car in the team’s simulator.
“There is so much more to learn again, but you jump into the simulator and after five laps it’s like ‘oh, okay, I’ve still got it then!'” said Button.
“I can still direct the car around the corners and I still know how to change gear and push the brake medal and modulate the throttle. That never leaves you.”
