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Button considered Olympics entry

Jenson Button says he considered competing at the 2016 Olympics amid the uncertainty surrounding his F1 future.

With McLaren securing the signature of Fernando Alonso, the team was left with a decision between Button and rookie team-mate Kevin Magnussen for the second seat this season. Much delaying and deliberating meant it was December before Button finally got the nod to retain his seat, and he had been using that time to consider other options outside F1.

One potential challenge which Button thought about was competing as a triathlete at next year’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, but he says his age proved a decisive factor, with Britain’s Olympic and Commonwealth champion Alistair Brownlee the elder of two brothers at 26.

"I did think about Rio and then decided 'no'," Button told the Daily Mirror. "First of all I am way too old - about 10 years too old compared to the Brownlee brothers - and so it's definitely not for me. I'm a pretty good amateur athlete but anyone at the top of their game as a professional is at a completely different level to that.”

Button has taken part in a number of triathlons - even organising his own for charity - and will run in the London Marathon this year.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.