Button predicts title defence will be toughest ever

(GETTY IMAGES)

Jenson Button believes his title defence will be the most difficult in the history of Formula One.

Hundreds of fans at the Bluewater Shopping Centre in Kent greeted Button two days after he kept the crown British, following Lewis Hamilton's triumph last year.

"It's getting more and more difficult," he said. "It's a very competitive sport. I'm sure it was in the 70s and 80s but now, for me, every single driver on the grid deserves to be there. They are very talented, they're not paying their way into the sport. So to have the competitiveness between the drivers, but also the teams – it's amazing how close it's been this season. It's going to be difficult [to win the title again next year] but that's every driver's aim and that will be my aim next season."