F1’s 2009 world champion Jenson Button has announced that he will retire from professional racing after the Eight Hours of Bahrain, calling time on a legendary career
Jenson Button has confirmed he is retiring from motorsport. The 2009 world champion will compete one final time at the Eight Hours of Bahrain in early November before hanging up his racing boots for good.
Button ended his F1 career at the close of the 2016 season before returning for a one-off appearance with McLaren at the 2017 Monaco Grand Prix. Since then, the Somerset-born driver has raced in various categories, including the NASCAR Cup Series and the World Endurance Championship.
The 45 year old, who continues to work as a pundit on Sky Sports F1’s coverage, revealed in July that he would be stepping back from full-time racing and leaving his position with Jota Cadillac, but Button has now confirmed that his racing days will soon be over.
“This will be my last race. I’ve always liked Bahrain, I think it’s a fun track, and I’m going to enjoy it as much as I can because this will be the end of my professional racing career,” Button told BBC Radio Somerset.
“I’ve really enjoyed my time with Jota in WEC, but my life has got way too busy, and it’s not fair on the team or on myself to go into 2026 and think that I’m going to have enough time for it.
“My kids are four and six, and you’re away for a week, and you miss so much, you don’t get this time back. I feel like I’ve missed a lot the last couple of years, which has been fine because I knew that would happen, but I’m not willing to do that again for another season.”
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Following difficult starts in Qatar and Imola at the beginning of the campaign, Button’s squad bounced back with impressive performances at Spa and Le Mans before securing their sole podium finish of the year in Sao Paulo.
Button and teammates Earl Bamber and Sebastien Bourdais are determined to push Cadillac across the line as the American Manufacturers’ Championship battle with Porsche reaches its conclusion. The British driver’s team sit 22 points behind their German competitors going into the final round in Bahrain.
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“We’re still fighting as a team for the Constructors’ Championship,” Button said following his major announcement. “We’re still in the hunt for the win, which is obviously very difficult, but P2 is attainable.
“There’s a lot to look forward to in Bahrain, and it being my last race… I’ve always liked Bahrain. I think it’s a fun track, and I’m going to enjoy it as much as I can, because this will be the end of my professional racing career.”
