Honda's New Man Brawn Backs Button - and Himself to Produce a Car

Honda's new team principal, Ross Brawn, believes Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello have the ability to revive the squad's ailing fortunes. On the day when his appointment was announced Brawn said: "My view is that both the team's drivers are more than capable [of winning grands prix]."

He has signed a performance-related contract which could earn him $6m (£2.9m) a year if the team starts to achieve hard results but he will have his work cut out after a dismal season in which Honda finished eighth in the constructors' championship on six points - 198 fewer than Ferrari, where he was technical director.

Brawn stressed that what Honda needed was a competitive car that could deliver results. "The drivers are not an issue," he continued. "On his day Rubens was as quick as Michael [Schumacher] and Jenson is outstanding. They are as good as anyone. Let's hope we can give them the material to do the job."

Signing Brawn represents a major coup for Honda, whose chief executive, Nick Fry, admitted he had spent the last seven months trying to finalize a deal which could be the most important in the team's history. After masterminding Schumacher's five consecutive world championships at Ferrari between 2000 and 2004, Brawn decided to take a year's sabbatical after Schumacher retired at the end of 2006.

Despite this, it was always felt within the formula one community that he would return to Ferrari in 2007 but, with Jean Todt remaining in the role of overall chief executive for the famous Italian company, Brawn concluded that the challenge of returning to his old haunts in Italy would be "like putting on a very comfortable glove".

Although he retained cordial links with Ferrari - and agreed to talk to them first in the event of considering a return to formula one - the fact that he had been living back in the United Kingdom for the past 12 months eventually inclined him towards accepting the Honda job. Accordingly Ferrari yesterday confirmed that his protege, the former sporting director Stefano Domenicali, would be promoted to chief of the company's racing department.

"The fact that Ferrari wasn't in crisis made it less attractive to me," said Brawn. "They've done well and will do well and have got a good structure there to go forward with. My job now is to beat them."

Reflecting on his sabbatical, he added: "The 12 months away helped me focus a bit on what I enjoyed about racing, what aspects I enjoy. I miss the racing a lot. I miss the sport, I miss the teamwork, I miss being a part of a group of people who achieve something that is very difficult but, when achieved, is very rewarding. "I had a wonderful year but you can only indulge yourself for so long."

In his new role Brawn will assume full responsibility for designing, manufacturing, engineering and racing Honda's formula one car. He will work alongside Fry, who continues as chief executive of the team. Brawn refused to put any sort of time limit on how long it might take the team to achieve success, making the point that he had not visited the Honda formula one headquarters at Brackley until the last few days as he did not want to fuel speculation about his possible plans before he had finally reached a firm agreement.

"I think the [Honda] facilities are top class, as good as anyone [in the business]," he said. "In terms of the top level of formula one Honda are closer to it than Ferrari was when I joined 10 years ago." Button, who has won one race in 135 starts, will be hoping he is right.