Jenson Button, Rolex Testimonee, Talks About Time And Racing Prior To Rolex 24 At Daytona

On January 27 to 28^th, one of the most anticipated 24-hour endurance races on the circuit takes place: Rolex 24 at Daytona. Held at Daytona International Speedway the race celebrates its 65th anniversary and kicks off the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season. A supporter of the challenge since the 1960s, Rolex formalized its commitment in 1992 by becoming the Title Sponsor, championing. For its 62nd edition, the famed race welcomes back 56 past winners and luminaries from across motor sport. Rolex testimonee  Jenson Button is competing. In fact, the 2009 FIA Formula 1 World Champion is making his debut driving for Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti. Button will race in the Acura ARX-06 GTP.

Jenson Button, who will be 44 years old on January 19, 2024, is no stranger to racing, as the British-born driver grew up in the sport.  After his F1 career, he continued in different racing arenas  (including three Nascar races) and even did some endurance racing, having driven at LeMans 24 Hours just last year.  He has even recently revived the British coach builder brand Radford.

With a host of victories to call his own, maybe he can take another win at the Rolex 24 at Daytona. Recently, we sat down with Button to talk about time, racing and Rolex. That interview has been edited and condensed.

Naturally, as a brand ambassador for Rolex, he was wearing a Rolex. However, as he pointed out, the watch on his wrist was his father’s that he had purchased for his dad’s 70^th birthday and later inherited it. He said he bought his first Rolex Daytona in 2000 – before he was a brand ambassador. “It was stainless steel and I bought it because of the racing connection, and it looked really cool on. I still own it and wear it.”

Currently, he says he has four special Rolex watches, three of which are Daytona’s and one is a white gold GMT with meteorite dial. “One of my favorites is a yellow gold one with a with green dial. It is stunning and very bright thanks to the yellow gold. But it scratches easily and when I got it, it was like you are when you get a new pair of shoes. You don’t want scuff marks, but now I am at the ‘whatever’ stage, so I wear it a lot more.”

When he raced with McLaren, the team had another affiliation so he couldn’t really wear his Rolex watches, but he wanted to because, as he put it, “Rolex dominates motorsports. We all associate the brand with motorsports and we are all very passionate about what we do, so you see Rolex around the track a lot. Plus, they are always pushing the boundaries and limits, just like we do as drivers. Plus, they have a very relaxed attitude.”

According to Button, he collects cars, and has a good number of classic cars, especially Jaguars. “It is a mechanical thing  and it is like a watch. I love the mechanics and the precision has to be perfect. I used to have 40 or 50 cars, but my collection is smaller now. They were never in one place and I would just look at them and  never drive  all of them, so what was the point. I sold most of my collection and then I started driving what I wanted, like an 8 Type Jaguar with racing clutch and a Singer Porsche.” Button says he still has the first car he ever bought – a Ferrari.

When I asked him what time means for him, he was candid. “Time – for a racing driver  — time is everything. It’s all about how  quickly you can get around a lap or how quickly you can get from point A to B. You are always looking for hundredths of a second and maybe thousands of  a second. You are always thinking about time. There is not enough of it . Everybody is looking for more time. Time is a big thing for me and spending time away from home and balancing time away from home is tricky.”

So, what was the longest moment of Jenson Button’s life?  “Racing and taking my first win in F1 felt like it went on forever.  I was in Budapest in 2006. The race was just 1  hour and a half but it felt like five hours. And then I won. It was the moment that lasted forever.”

The upcoming Rolex 24 at Daytona is a testament to the brand’s longstanding involvement in the world of motorsports. In endurance racing, Rolex is the Official Timepiece of the Rolex 24 at Daytona, as well as the  24 Hours of Le Mans and the 12 Hours of Sebring. The brand is also a partner of the Daytona International Speedway.