24 Hours of Le Mans 2025: Jenson Button aims for podium finish in France - 'I've got two kids, I know what it's like not sleeping'
Published 12/06/2025 at 11:30 GMT+1
Jenson Button finished ninth at last year's 24 Hours of Le Mans and is aiming for an improvement at this year's race. The former Formula One world champion says he isn't worried about sleep deprivation going into the event in the north west of France, given he has two children. The iconic race will be live on TNT Sports and discovery+ throughout this weekend.
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Video credit: TNT Sports
Jenson Button insists he will not be worrying too much about sleep deprivation as he prepares to compete at the 24 Hours of Le Mans 2025.
Button, a former Formula One world champion, will be racing for Cadillac Hertz Team Jota in France. The iconic event will be live on TNT Sports and discovery+ this weekend.
And Button said: "A 22-year-old doesn’t have kids, most of the time, so they don't know what sleep deprivation is yet until they get here – so it's more of a shock. For me, I've got two kids, I know what it's like not sleeping.
"I'm also very good at sleeping anyway – I could go on that couch and within two minutes be asleep. So I'm very, very lucky. So when I get out of the car, I eat, I shower, I'm straight to sleep. I have no issues with that, so I'm one of the lucky ones.
"I think last year, Seb [Bourdais] said that he struggled to sleep. But last year when we had the safety car through the night, I was driving for three and a half hours behind the safety car, which was the most boring three and a half hours of my life – but that meant that all the other drivers could sleep really well, they were in the paddock.
"Hopefully that won't be the case this year!"
Button finished ninth in the 2024 race and is feeling positive about improving on that over the coming days.
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"[I feel] pretty optimistic," he told the BBC. "When you look at the testing, you'd say that Toyota and Ferrari do have an advantage in terms of pace.
"But this race isn't entirely about pace, it's about teamwork, not making mistakes through the night, consistency. All those areas we're very strong.
"I'm really looking forward to the race. It's not going to be the easiest for us to get on the podium but it never is in a 24-hour race."
Button competed in F1 for 18 successive seasons, winning the world title with Brawn in 2009.
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You can watch all the action from Le Mans 24 in the UK with TNT Sports and discovery+.
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