Ross Brawn believes that Jenson Button's future in Formula 1 would have been best served by staying at the team that helped make him a title winner, rather than make the switch to rival McLaren.
Prior to the announcement that Button had indeed signed with McLaren, Brawn told Britain's The Independent newspaper, "Negotiations [with Button] are continuing and the reports that he has already agreed to terms with McLaren are not helpful. I would be amazed if that were the case. His best future is with our team, where he has a good group around him, and there's a lot to be said for that. The logical thing would be for him to stay with us, but, of course, logic doesn't always prevail."
Talks between Button and Brawn stalled after the two parties could not agree on financial terms for a new deal – with Button's camp adamant that he deserved a wage hike after taking an $8.4 million pay cut for this year. But with Brawn's finances reportedly tight, even following its takeover by Mercedes-Benz, the team and driver could not agree on a figure before McLaren entered the equation.
Brawn-Mercedes CEO Nick Fry told the BBC earlier this week that his team would not get involved in an auction for Button's services.
"We've had discussions with Jenson on what we think is a sensible salary and this is not going to change anything," Fry said about the impact of the team becoming Mercedes Grand Prix. "We're running with a budget that is probably less than most and that's what Mercedes likes."