Official: Jenson and Rubens retained for 2008

By Phil Huff
July 19 2007

Honda Racing F1 have confirmed that Rubens Barrichello will remain with the team, as revealed earlier by RealHondaF1.com. The Brazilian will line up alongside current team mate Jenson Button for the 2008 season, leaving the team with an unchanged line up for the third year running.

The team will benefit from the stability and wealth of experience that Jenson and Rubens bring, as it works towards an improved second half of the 2007 season and looks forward to a more competitive 2008.

"Although we are still very firmly focused on the current season, I am excited about the opportunity that we have for 2008," explains Jenson Button. "It goes without saying that 2007 has been extremely frustrating but over the past few races we have gradually started to see some improvement.

"We have not had the performance to be competitive this year but what we do have is a very solid team of people which has been boosted recently by some key new appointments.

"Every team has good times and bad," he adds, "and I am confident that our recent difficulties are now behind us and that next year looks promising."

"I am delighted to confirm that I am staying with Honda for 2008," comments Rubens Barrichello, in a statement almost identical to that which we received earlier. "When I came here in 2006, it was always my intention to develop a long-term relationship and help build a strong team together. 2007 has been tough so far but I believe we are heading in the right direction again.

"In addition to the great team we have already, there are some good new people coming on board and I have confidence that we will make progress now. Jenson and I have a great relationship together as team-mates and stability will be key as we look forward to the challenge of 2008. For now though, we have eight races remaining and that is where our focus lies."

Rubens Barrichello is now the most experienced racer on the grid, having entered 245 Grands Prix to date. By the end of 2008 he'll have surpassed Ricardo Patrese's record of 256 races, becoming the most experienced driver ever. Starting out with Jordan-Hart in 1993, Rubens has taken 61 podiums, with nine race wins.

Jenson Button will be starting his sixth season as a Honda powered driver, after starting in 2000 with Williams-BMW. So far he's finished on the podium 15 times, taking one win on the way. Arguably his best year, 2004, was overshadowed by an utterly dominant Ferrari team.