2009 Formula 1 World Championship-winning team principal Ross Brawn has recently gone on record to proclaim is he quite confident he and the Silverstone-based-Brawn GP organization will, once again, field new World Champion Jenson Button for the 2010 F1 season. While Button’s contract has recently expired and his name has been tossed around by the global media, duly linking him with a number of other race teams – including McLaren - for 2010, Button has also made it clear he would like to remain with Brawn.

"Jenson's obviously a great driver and for those teams without their full compliment of drivers he has got to be a target," Brawn told the BBC on Sunday. "We want Jenson to stay in the team and I think we will find a solution.

"Jenson has a contract with us, but of course that contract is not the salary of a world champion and not the salary of a team that is now in a much stronger position than it was ten months ago.

"We are working with Jenson to find a balance between what we can afford and what he feels is fair for his status and what he can contribute in the future.

"You are never 100% but I would say 99% [certain it will happen]."

Brawn and Button have apparently agreed to try and hammer out a deal by a fortnight after the final Grand Prix of 2009 in Abu Dhabi.

"It's a little difficult going into Abu Dhabi because we still want to put up a good performance there so it's not the best environment," said Brawn. "We have set a target of two weeks after the last race to get this concluded, but maybe it will happen before then if we can reach an agreement.

"As I say it's finding this middle ground between what we can afford and it's what we can afford compared to all the other things we need to do with the team.

"We have a finite amount of resource and money and we have to look at the best way of spending that. It's not money that is going to shareholders, it's money that is going into the team to invest and buy the things that we need to be competitive in the future.

"We have a great relationship with Jenson and he has been a wonderful part of the team and he has done a fantastic job this year," he added. "There have been a few difficulties in qualifying this year but his race performances have been exemplary.

"I think it can only go forward from here with Jenson."

By Eric Johnson