Brawn to offer Button massive pay rise.

Byline: IAN PARKES

FORMULA ONE team principal Ross Brawn insists world champion Jenson Button is "99 per cent certain" to stay with the team next season.

Talks are continuing to try to deliver a pay deal worthy of Button's new champion status, and it has been reported Brawn GP are prepared to offer the Briton close to pounds 8million-a-year.

Button took a pounds 5million pay cut when former team owners Honda pulled out last December, and even agreed to pay for his own flights and hotel bills.

But Brawn looks set to reward him with a huge salary hike to keep him from the clutches of other ambitious teams.

Brawn said: "Jenson's obviously a great driver, so he's got to be a target.

"We want Jenson to stay in the team, and I think we'll find a solution.

"Jenson has a contract with us. But that contract is not the salary of a world champion, not the salary of a team that is in a much stronger position than it was 10 months ago.

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

Asked if he is 100 per cent sure Button will stay, Brawn replied: "You're never 100 per cent - but I'd say 99 per cent."

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