Sunday October 20th, 2002

By Will Gray

British youngster Jenson Button will never be good enough to become a Formula One World Champion, according to his former Renault technical director Mike Gascoyne.

Button, 22, has spent three years in Formula One but has often been criticised for concentrating more on money and Grand Prix glamour than on his ambitions to become the best man on the race track.

And Gascoyne, who backed the French team's decision to take on Spaniard Fernando Alonso rather than renewing Button's contract for next year, believes the Briton doesn't have the spark of a superstar.

"Honestly I don't think he has," said Gascoyne. "I think he is very good, he is a very likeable young man and he deserves a place in Formula One. But can he become one of the greats? No, I don't think he can.

"The numbers speak for themselves. If you look at him over the two years then you are going to have to say well, he really has been dominated by both teammates.

"We didn't give him a very good car at the start of 2001 but we stuck by him when he wasn't performing and Giancarlo [Fisichella] was doing a fantastic job. But we had a long-term plan and you have got to make a decision.

"We believe Fernando is very special but it wasn't a foregone conclusion at all. If Jenson had out-qualified his teammate by half a second everywhere it might have been different. But he hasn't."

Italian teammates Giancarlo Fisichella and Jarno Trulli have out-classed Button in the last two years according to Gascoyne, and he believes Button has been knocked out by the glamour of the sport.

"You have got to put it in perspective," said Gascoyne. "Jenson's got his boats, he has got his Monaco flat and he is earning millions of dollars."

Button was told he would be dropped by Renault at the French Grand Prix in July and will move to British American Racing Honda next year to line up alongside Jacques Villeneuve.

But Gascoyne thinks that Button, who scored more than half of Renault's points this year, will have his work cut out trying to beat the Canadian star, who won the world title with Williams in 1997.

"I think he has got a big job," said Gascoyne. "Villeneuve is going to be driving the other car and he needs to beat him. If he does that he will have a good career in Formula One. If he doesn't and he gets dominated by him..."

Published at 00:21:56 GMT