19/10/2006
NEWS STORY
Jenson Button has hit out at comments made earlier this week by Bernie Ecclestone, when the F1 supremo accused the English driver of not pushing himself hard enough.
Speaking at Interlagos today, ahead of this weekend's season finale, the Honda driver dismissed Ecclestone's claim: "You have just got to look at the facts and the statistics, which he hasn't done," he said. "I read that I don't work hard enough, that I don't go from a race to a test. Well that's not true. I've done more mileage than anyone in testing, especially over the winter.
"During the season it's been similar to Michael," he continued, "about the same mileage because we're limited. There's no facts to say that I don't put enough effort in, I put a lot of effort in.
"Formula One is very different to what it used to be in the past," her added, "and you have to work very hard. Every driver is working hard but people don't see that. I'm giving everything. Everything I do in my life is to do with Formula One and to do with improving my career. So that couldn't be further from the truth."
Indeed, as confirmed by the statistics shown earlier this week on Pitpass, of all the drivers who have contested every race this season, Button, after Michael Schumacher, has been the busiest during in-season testing, completing 6,086 miles. In pre-season testing, from January right up to the Bahrain Grand Prix, Button was the busiest of all drivers, completing 4,385 miles.