F1 star put model WAG on sex ban to concentrate on title fight at Brazilian GP

British F1 hero Jenson Button had a steamy romp with his then-girlfriend in a team office at the start of his title-winning year before imposing a sex ban

Jenson Button put his then-girlfriend on a sex ban as he strived to clinch the Formula 1 drivers’ title.

Button famously won the sport’s biggest prize in 2009 following an incredible rags-to-riches story. At the end of the previous year, the Briton’s F1 future was plunged into doubt when his Honda team suddenly pulled out of the sport.

The Brackley-based squad – now Mercedes – looked set to fold, which would have meant the loss of hundreds of jobs. However, a recuse deal led by team bosses Ross Brawn and Nick Fry saved the day. Equipped with Mercedes engines, Button made a dream start to the season, winning six of the first seven races to rack up a handsome lead in the standings.

However, Button, now 45, then got jittery as team-mate Rubens Barichello and Red Bull‘s Sebastian Vettel closed the gap over the second half of the season. By his side throughout that campaign was his model WAG Jessica Michibata.

Button credited her for his fifth-place finish in the fourth-to-last race of the season in Singapore, saying: “My amazing girlfriend… after qualifying, we got to my room.

“I’m not going to tell you all the details but she said lie down, so I did, and she gave me a foot massage. She said, ‘So tell me about today.’ That was so cool. She really listens.”

But finishing a lowly eighth in the following Japanese Grand Prix, which Vettel won, piled the pressure back on the former Williams and Renault driver, prompting him to set limits on physical contact with his other half for the penultimate round in Brazil, where he could clinch the title.

A Brawn insider said at the time: “It’s such an important weekend for Jenson. He has hundreds of things to do and wants to be able to concentrate on them alone.

“Jessica normally always travels with him but he has to keep his mind on the job, so to speak.”

The self-imposed sex ban was a drastic move from Button, who had admitted to “getting steamy” with Jessica in a team office after winning the opening race of the season in Australia.

But it paid off, with a battling fifth-place finish proving enough to seal the title with a race to spare.

After being reunited with Jessica, the couple will undoubtedly have celebrated in style with some quality alone time.

As the romance continued to blossom, Jessica was seen in tears when Button won her home race in Japan in 2011. However, after getting married in 2014, they split just a year later.

Button got married to American model Brittny Ward in 2022. They have two young children together.

Meanwhile, a thrilling F1 title battle resumes in Brazil this weekend with the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. Following his win in Mexico last time out, Lando Norris leads his McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri by a single point, with world champion Max Verstappen 35 points further back in third.