The saga over Jenson Button's future plans has taken a new twist after the world champion reportedly paid a visit to McLaren's headquarters yesterday.
A McLaren spokesperson confirmed to the British media that Button had made a trip to Woking, saying: "Having just arrived at Heathrow, Jenson made a small detour to Woking to say hello."
With Button yet to re-sign with the Brawn team that took him to the title, McLaren could go into 2010 with an all-British line-up and the last two world champions in its cars if it snatches Button away.
However the Woking squad is also still in negotiation with Kimi Raikkonen, whose management paid their own visit to the factory earlier this week, as revealed by ITV.com/f1.
Although Button and Brawn have publicly insisted that they want to stay together for 2010, it is well known that money has become a stumbling block in their talks.
Button hopes for a pay rise now he has clinched the championship - particularly because he voluntarily took a salary reduction and covered his own travel costs this year as the team's budget was slashed during its transformation from the lavishly-funded Honda works operation to the plucky underdog Brawn GP team.
But while Brawn's finances are now in better shape, with future sponsorship in place and potentially a Mercedes buy-out on the horizon, team boss Ross Brawn has been keen to strike a balance between driver wages and technical spending.
Button's manager Richard Goddard admitted that the situation was becoming frustrating - and was adamant that the new champion is asking for a fair wage.
"Brawn have been saying for months that big sponsors are lined up for 2010 and yet they are simultaneously saying that Jenson's demands – which are way less than under Honda – are not affordable," Goddard told the Daily Telegraph.
"If they really can't afford him, then fair enough; I can quite understand Ross Brawn is reluctant to bankrupt the team for the sake of one guy.
"But if Brawn are going to sell the team, and there is going to be a big influx of money, then why shouldn't Jenson be making some of that?
"He was a major contributor to the team's success this year.
"We have got other irons in the fire.
"Ultimately, Jenson is a very loyal guy but at some point it stops being about the money.
"Let's face it, everyone likes to feel wanted."
If Button does choose to leave Brawn, the world champion team would need a totally new driver line-up for 2010.
Rubens Barrichello has already been announced as a Williams driver, while Nico Rosberg is expected to arrive at Ross Brawn's squad as part of Mercedes' increased involvement.
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