The winner of this week's mailbox - Mark Setzer - believes Forrmula One World Champion Jenson Button has reached the climax of his career...

In order to be a world champion at any sport you have to be good. Very good. In many cases you have to be the best. But not in all sports...

Take Formula One for example. In the past 30 years there have been 15 different World Drivers Champions. Of those, 9 drivers only won the title once. Jenson Button will probably be one of those. Like Jenson, most of those drivers were successful as a result of a combination of good driving, a bit of luck or good fortune, but more importantly, a very good car.

Jaques Villeneuve won the 1997 world championship for Williams taking seven victories and eight podiums. His only other victories came in the preceding year, where he won four races Williams, with his team mate Damon Hill taking the title.

Hill managed victories in five separate seasons, so he was by no means "a flash in the pan".

Williams won 20 out of 33 races in those two years, totally dominating the scene. Michael Schumacher managed to win eight of the 13 other races. Villeneuve never won a race after his victorious year.

Getting back to this year, Button won six out of the first seven races of this year, building a virtually unassailable lead, with only his Brawn team-mate, Rubens Barrichello being able to realistically challenge for the title.

In the nine races since his last win, Jenson has only managed to be on the podium once - a second place at Monza.

It almost looks like a tale of two halves. Clearly this cannot be as a result of Jenson losing his edge, but rather as a result of the other manufacturers catching up with development.

I'd be very surprised if he wins in Abu Dhabi. I'd be very surprised if he wins more than another one or two races in his whole career. He's a good driver, but not a great one. He's a deserving champion, but his career may have reached it's zenith.

Messers Vettel, Hamilton and Alonso will be dividing up the lions share of victories in the coming years, leaving precious little for anyone else. Whether Lewis or Sebastian will be great champions remains to be seen, but they are not just very good, but great drivers.

  • Do YOU agree with Mark's assessment? Leave your comments below!
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