Ever wanted to know your favourite Formula One driver a little better? Ever wanted a glimpse inside their lives outside the cockpit and see what really makes them tick - away from the race track? You can with the help of our series, The Secret Life. Reigning world champion - and McLaren driver - Jenson Button is our latest target, as he reveals a hatred of greasy food, a youthful interest in British reggae band UB40 and a one-time penchant for see-through shoes… Q: Are you the kind of guy to have a ‘Plan-B’?
Jenson Button: No, I never have a ‘Plan-B’. That’s one of my weaknesses, obviously.
Q: What is your favourite high?
JB: Winning gives me the best high. The adrenalin buzz of winning.
Q: Who is your dream date?
JB: I don’t have any dream dates. I have a girlfriend and I am a one-woman man!
Q: Which film makes you cry?
JB: Not many. Actually ‘The Notebook’ almost made me cry. And also ‘Days of Thunder’… no, not really, that was a joke.
Q: What are you afraid of?
JB: I don’t like sharks and losing, I suppose. It’s the abhorrent opposite of winning!
Q: What was the last book you read?
JB: ’Breaking Vegas’, which is about gambling.
Q: What was your biggest (non-Formula One) speeding fine?
JB: I think it was around £500, something like 600 Euro. That was in 2000. I cannot remember how much over the speed limit I was.
Q: Name five things that you hate?
JB: When it’s raining and you don’t have an umbrella. Greasy food, I hate greasy food. I hate losing, the economy and people who are negative.
Q: Have you ever dyed your hair?
JB: I did it when I was younger. I was around 14. I dyed the front very blond. It looked horrible.
Q: What was the first CD you bought?
JB: It was a band called UB40. It was a long time ago. The single was ‘Rat in the Kitchen’.
Q: Do you have any tattoos or piercings?
JB: No piercings. I have three tattoos at the moment, but I’m getting a fourth when I’m in Japan. What two of them mean I cannot tell you, it’s private and in Japanese. That one (on the right side of his hip) is a button… that’s obvious.
Q: What did your teachers say about you in your school report?
JB: I tell you what, I wasn’t so bad in lessons but I was a bit poor at concentrating. My mind always used to be thinking of something else - I was always thinking about racing.
Q: Who were your childhood heroes?
JB: Someone I really admired was Alain Prost - his driving. I also admired Nigel (Mansell), who was always fun to watch. Outside of Formula One, there wasn’t really anybody.
Q: Do you have any guilty pleasures?
JB: Nice cars! I love banoffee pie, but I don’t eat it very often, so there’s no guilt involved.
Q: Do you collect anything?
JB: Cars and watches - the typical habits of a racing driver.
Q: What would you die for?
JB: Nothing, except my family.
Q: What was your worst buy?
JB: I bought some see-through shoes. For some reasons I thought that they would look really cool. They were plastic and completely see through. You put them on and could see your feet. That was pretty disgusting. I gave them to a friend.
Q: How do you take your coffee?
JB: I like a macchiato with one sugar.
Q: Your ideal non-race Sunday morning?
JB: Maybe doing a triathlon. I don’t do it very often, but I love pushing my body and myself to the maximum. Or spending time with friends and family, and my girlfriend. Relaxing, maybe on the beach or climbing up a mountain.
Q: What was your first car?
JB: It was a bike. A little Yamaha 50cc, when I was seven years-old. I was very lucky.
Q: What’s the most embarrassing mistake you’ve ever made?
JB: I don’t know. I am sure there are a lot and my friends could probably answer that one immediately. I try not to remember them!
Q: What is the best thing that you can cook?
JB: Pasta is easy. Everyone can cook pasta. And that’s about it for me. I can do the sauce from scratch.
Q: When was the last time you were really angry?
JB: I think I was furious with myself last year in Brazil in qualifying. I was pretty angry about choosing the tyres I did. That was when I was really angry. I thought that the championship might slip away. It was a pretty big day for me.
Source:formula1.com
Tags:Fernando Alonso,Bernie Ecclestone, Karun Chandhok, Mark Webber,Sebastian Vettel,Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button, Nico Hulkenberg,,Jaime Alguersuari, Kamui Kobayashi, Karun Chandhok,Robert Kubica, Adrian Sutil, Vitaly Petrov,
Felipe Massa,Michael Schumacher, Lucas di Grassi, Heikki Kovalainen, Nico Rosberg
