The money does not matter, says Button

By Alan Baldwin

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Formula One leader Jenson Button refused to let talk of multi-million pound pay rises and new contracts turn his head at the Turkish Grand Prix on Thursday.

The 29-year-old Briton, chasing his sixth win in seven races this season, made clear that the only figure he was focusing on was being the number one on the racetrack and in the championship.

British media reported last week that Button's Mercedes-powered Brawn GP team were prepared to offer him a significant rise to reward him for agreeing to a hefty pay cut at the start of the season.

Button slashed his salary to secure his Formula One survival after Honda, Brawn's predecessors, announced in December they were pulling out for financial reasons.

Some estimates have suggested he took a 5 million pound ($8.19 million) hit, reducing his annual wages to around 3 million.

The Briton told reporters on Thursday that the money was not on his mind.

"I haven't spoken to anyone about it," he said of the pay rise speculation. "I've read the articles and that's about it. Even after reading the articles I haven't spoken to the team about it because I'm not interested.

"I'm here to race and I don't want to talk about money...it's irrelevant at the moment.