Jenson Button believes Formula 1 hasn’t changed after driving Nigel Mansell‘s Williams FW14b, before Sunday’s 2023 British Grand Prix.
Button, who never won the British GP, drove in F1 for 16 years and became world champion in 2009 after a fairytale season with Brawn GP.
Asked by selected media outlets, including Total-Motorsport.com about how much F1 had changed over the past 30 years, Button answered: “It has in it hasn’t.
“I think it has in terms of safety in terms of the way the cars look [and] how safe you feel in the cockpit.
“The amount of grip I had, I was surprised. Obviously, you know it’s not as quick as a modern-day F1 car, but I tell you what, it’s bloody quick.
“It doesn’t go in a straight line very well. It just dances the whole way down the street all over the track. I think it would be quicker than an F2 car.”
Mansell’s FW14B a real throwback to childhood
TheFW14b, which claimed ten wins during 1992 in the hands of Mansell and Riccardo Patrese, was also demonstrated by Sebastian Vettel before the 2022 British GP.
Vettel, who also owned the car, ran it on sustainable fuels before being greeted by Mansell on the starting grid following the end of his power laps.
“Unbelievable,” said Button when asked to describe his demonstration runs. “I did the seat fitting yesterday, and already it was pretty emotional just sitting in that car.
“It’s the car of probably a lot of our childhoods because our Nige was driving it, and I remember sitting on the sofa with the old man, watching all the races and seeing him clinch the title.
“I feel so lucky to be able to drive that car, and yeah, very much a moment I’ll remember forever.”
Where is the next F1 2023 race?
With the F1 circus finished at Silverstone, we move on to the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix which will be held at the Hungaroring, Budapest over the weekend of July 21-23.
