While reckoning that the 30-year old racer is a worthy Formula One champion and that he didn't get to win the crown last year by mistake, Ecclestone said that Button is yet to prove that he is as talented as the other drivers on the F1 grid. And Hamilton is the first he should beat in order to silence the critics.
“Jenson is Jenson. He's a racer of the old school. Nice, charming, a great lad. A worthy world champion, but is he as gifted as the others who got the crown? I don't know. We will find out this year in his duel with Lewis Hamilton,” said Ecclestone in an interview posted on March's Red Bulletin magazine.
While continuing to favor Sebastian Vettel for the world title, the British billionaire admitted that Fernando Alonso is one of the drivers he admires the most, for the high moral values he has.
“Fernando is very Spanish in his character. I get on well with him personally, he's a close friend. He's a nice, sensitive, reliable guy who has very high moral standards,” opinionated Ecclestone about Alonso, with whom he played poker several times in the past (Kubica, Rosberg and Fisichella are also regulars at the poker table within the F1 paddock).
Nevertheless, Ecclestone avoided naming a favorite for the world title in 2010. With the Top 4 teams closer than ever in lap times, and no less than 4 world champions driving for them this season, one can expect anything this year.
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