Button runner-up in BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award 2009
13th December 2009, 21:01 by Keith Collantine 99 Comments »
Like new team mate Hamilton, Button missed out on a SPOTY win
Jenson Button failed to win this year’s BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award – having gone into the competition as favourite.
He finished runner-up to footballer Ryan Giggs.
It’s the third year in a row an F1 driver has missed out on the prize. Button’s new team mate Lewis Hamilton was runner-up for the award in 2007 and 2008.
Still it’s not all bad for Button – he collected his world drivers’ championship trophy at the FIA Gala on Friday.
Do you think Button should have won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award? Have your say below.
Previous motor racing Sports Personality of the Year Award winners
John Surtees – 1959 (for motorbike racing, before becoming F1 world champion)
Stirling Moss – 1961
Jackie Stewart – 1973
Nigel Mansell – 1986, 1992
Damon Hill – 1994, 1996
Read more: Lewis Hamilton loses 2008 Sports Personality of the Year Award
Icthyes said on 13th December 2009, 21:04
Keith, that was even quicker than Jenson Button’s pole laps!
steph said on 13th December 2009, 21:04
Blimey Keith that was quick.
When will F1 will recognised properly. Always overshadowed by football in this country:(
Hammad said on 13th December 2009, 21:51
At least be glad that it’s still a very popular sport. Not the case in other countries where you have to go search for miles and miles just to find someone else who knows what F1 even is…
steph said on 13th December 2009, 22:11
I know I shouldn’t whine sorry
Mike "the bike" Schumacher said on 13th December 2009, 23:30
According to Hugh Mcilvanney in the Sunday Times F1 drivers have won it more times then footballers actually.
But the real reason I’ve referenced Mcilvanney is to finally have an excuse to launch an verbal attack on him.
He, for some reason hates F1 and all thigs motorsport. He writes on the back page of the sport section and so gets a lot of coverege. But the problem is he is a completely ignorent person. He claims cars play the majority role, and I guess they do to a certain extent, but he completely disregards F1 as a sport, and yet he loves horse racing which is clearly more influenced by the horse than F1 is by the car.
They should never let someone who doesn’t have a clue about F1 write so much about it.
I guess this is one reason why Button winning the title aftre 150 races with just one win is a bad thing.
But I dont see why Giggs should have won it, it’s the sports personality of the year not the decade, so therefore Button should have won it hands down.
steph said on 14th December 2009, 6:25
Ahh but horse racing is so much easier and simpler to understand. Feed horse, get on it, whip it, hang on.
theo said on 14th December 2009, 8:47
football is the stupidist sport of all time, as far as i can make out its eleven or so overpayed dead heads kicking a piece of leather around arounda big field. F1 is on the cutting edge of tecnology, i thought at these stage of evolution people would appreciate sports like f1 and motorsport than some stone age sport like football!
Cant believe hamilton nver won it in 2007, what a scam!
Red Andy said on 14th December 2009, 8:20
Well Steph, F1 drivers have traditionally always done well at SPotY but you have to remember that until 2007, Britain had had little to celebrate in F1 for a very long time. Only when Hamilton came on the scene did we have a British driver who was in the hunt for the championship.
Having an F1 driver in second place three years in a row isn’t bad at all. One can argue over whether Giggs deserves the award but he is nonetheless an outstanding player and a credit to his team.
El Gordo said on 14th December 2009, 9:16
Not to take anything away from Ryan Giggs, but I think the award is given to him as much as a ‘lifetime achievement’ type award than it is for his achievements this year.
John H said on 14th December 2009, 10:33
Actually, footballers hardly ever win the Sports Personality of the year.
Random Chimp said on 14th December 2009, 14:52
Probably because of ‘personality’ prerequisite.
TommyB said on 13th December 2009, 21:05
Crazy I really thought Button would win. Who knows what you have to do to win it if you are an F1 driver.
Also why is Button “runner up” and Hamilton “loses”
Keith Collantine said on 13th December 2009, 21:07
Because last year everyone complained that I used the word ‘loses’!
TommyB said on 13th December 2009, 23:29
Haha good call
Siwongo said on 13th December 2009, 21:07
I love Button, but I really did think Giggs deserved it more. I’m sure Jensen would have won if he didn’t have that little slump where people lost confidence in him.
Mark Hitchcock said on 13th December 2009, 21:17
What’s Giggs actually done this year though?
SamS said on 13th December 2009, 21:34
Exactly Mark, what has he done,other than being at man u for 20 years. JB back from the dead wins.
Its fixed
steph said on 13th December 2009, 21:42
It isn’t fixed just football draws more fans in Brit and F1 is dismissed.
Noelinho said on 13th December 2009, 22:18
That’s not true – footballers rarely win. But Giggs is exceptional.
More to the point, the whole shortlist was exceptional this year. Any of the top 3 would wipe the floor in any other year. It shows the strength of British sport at the moment.
Me – I would have voted for Jessica Ennis. She is spectacularly good, and if it had been the Olympic title rather than the world title, she may have won it herself this year.
David A said on 14th December 2009, 0:24
Well, Giggs has done an exceptional job for Manchester United over the past year, winning the Premier League title despite being at the age of 36.
Jay Menon said on 14th December 2009, 3:00
I’m not a Man Utd fan by a long way, but Giggsy is one of my favourite players of all time, and I’m happy he got the award.
At his age, for the contribution he has given Man Utd over the past year, he deserves it.
I’m not saying Jenson deserved it any less, it just the way things go sometimes.
Siwongo said on 14th December 2009, 13:01
Just my opinion, calm down =p
Harvs said on 13th December 2009, 21:07
i dont think button deserved to win it more than Hamilton did 07 and 08.
anyway i dont think his “personality” has changed much over the last 3 years.
than again this award is a popularity contest and the award usually goes to someone involved in the more popular sport i.e. football
Mozza said on 13th December 2009, 21:13
Even Ryan Giggs himself was shocked! Not the end of the world though I hope it will spur Jenson on to win the drivers title again next season, maybe then at next years BBC sports personality of the year awards justice will be done.
S Hughes said on 13th December 2009, 21:44
Yeah, and Lewis will win.
David A said on 14th December 2009, 0:26
Hehe, well I thought it was very fair that Button didn’t win, if Hamilton didn’t win it in the last two years.
Dougie said on 13th December 2009, 21:14
As much as I voted for Jenson, I did feel the competition was tough and arguably there was some more deserving. However, not in a month of Sundays did I expect Giggs to get it. Bloody footballers!
sw6569 said on 13th December 2009, 21:16
If Button had won his championship differently, he would have won this.
I feel also that Lewis was unlucky that he won his championship in the year of the olympics and unprecedented success by the British team.
Good for Giggs I guess, he deserved to win it. Not sure about whether he deserved it this year though…! But Its a vote, and popular sports are bound to win
Icthyes said on 13th December 2009, 21:24
I’m glad Giggs won, to put in perspective it his year was what Rubens Barrichello’s would have been had he won the title, and then there’s a popularity element involved. Both deserved to win but I’m glad Ryan got it, he’s a legend.
Ironically, it’s only the second time this year that Button has finished second! But he’s got his WDC, SPOTY would have just been a nice bonus.
Peter said on 13th December 2009, 21:24
Giggs should have had life time award rather than the year award.
Steven said on 13th December 2009, 22:34
Agree.
Neil said on 13th December 2009, 21:28
Ross Brawn should have won this.
David Watkins said on 13th December 2009, 21:32
The worst thing was Brawn GP losing the team of the year award to the England Cricket Team. Bear in mind that England lost to a very poor West Indies side before they won the Ashes. The women’s team would have been a fair choice.
I’d have given the individual award to Ennis. Missing the Olympics with injury and coming back to crush the field in the World Champs was the achievement of the year
Mark Hitchcock said on 13th December 2009, 21:40
Agreed about the cricket. I didn’t hear much about the women’s cricket successes as they happened but what did the video say? They won the world cup, ashes and something else. Sounds like they’re absolutely dominant at the moment…unlike the men’s team who as you say were not on great form for most of the year and didn’t exactly dominate in the Ashes either.
Brawn GP were unlikely to win whoever the competition. Even “30 sporting experts” are unlikely to be able look past the drivers and see the actual teamwork in F1.
Kf said on 14th December 2009, 11:40
I thought Brawn would win the team award too. I think they deserved that more than Button getting sports personality of the year. They did an amazing job!
S Hughes said on 13th December 2009, 21:42
So glad the smug so and so didn’t win.
I thought Jessica Ennis should have won, but hey, as long as it wasn’t Button, I’m glad.
He didn’t deserve the WDC and he didn’t deserve SPOTY.
David Watkins said on 13th December 2009, 22:13
Of course he deserved the WDC. He won six races. Hamilton last year won 5, and Raikkonen the year before won 6.
S Hughes said on 13th December 2009, 22:21
Hamilton only won 5 races because Spa was stolen from him. Button only won the WDC because he had an unprecedentedly huge advantage car-wise at the beginning of the season. It’s really boring to keep pointing out the obvious.
S Hughes said on 13th December 2009, 22:23
I mean to have to keep pointing out the obvious.
David Watkins said on 13th December 2009, 22:24
It’s boring to listen to as well, believe me. I can’t be bothered to debunk your ‘argument’. There are dozens of better posters on here and on Autosport to do that
S Hughes said on 13th December 2009, 23:06
There are plenty of people who agree with me too.
David A said on 14th December 2009, 0:37
Now, it appears they’ve deserted you.
mp4-19b said on 14th December 2009, 6:08
David A said on 14th December 2009, 11:04
Ok, so everyone bar the crazy conspiracy theorist, then!
steph said on 14th December 2009, 6:27
Yeah but that’s like saying Massa only won 6 because Piquet crashed or his engine blew up in Hungary lol
VXR said on 14th December 2009, 16:49
“Unprecedented huge advantage” It has been one of the closest, if not the closest grid in F1 history!
vettelfan said on 13th December 2009, 22:16
Maybe he didn’t deserve SPOTY, but he totally deserved the WDC.
Ratboy said on 13th December 2009, 23:07
S hughes,
Button won 6 races and had 95points to Vettels 84
clearly he deserved the title,
Although I suppose they could of gave it to someone else, how about Piquet jnr? or badoer
He had the best car means nothing, he was just plain better than everyone else through out the season.
Harvs said on 14th December 2009, 9:15
can we just finish this! if you win it you deserved it (no matter how good the car was, because at the end of the day the car wont drive itself, and there is also someone else who has the same car), and if you did’nt, then you were not quite good enough and there will always be another chance in the year that follows.
And champions are decided on points not wins, so it doesnt matter how many you win! (despite what bernie thinks) so can we all just move on.
We cant change the past, only the FIA can do that (jokes! i shouldnt have said that, lol)
VXR said on 14th December 2009, 16:46
I’d completely forgotten that Hamilton and Raikkonen were driving real dogs when they won their titles. Thanks for the reminder. And that Renault of Alonso’s, Jeez that was slow!
Ben said on 13th December 2009, 21:45
Dont think Giggs should have won award for 2009, im not a big football fan but even I know that he hasnt done much this year, Jenson definitely deserved it
tEQUILLA sLAMMER said on 13th December 2009, 21:47
so many people had moneyon Button to win the SPOTY and he didnt, so the bookies make another nice little sum! So fixed its ludicrous!!! #:)
Mark Hitchcock said on 13th December 2009, 23:07
I was quite surprised when I had a look at the odds earlier. I was expecting Button to win, but didn’t think he was a dead cert as the bookies seemed to.