Button - Title up for grabs

Jenson Button is expecting more twists in the Formula One title race and says he is still firmly in the contention to retain his championship.

With the four races remaining in the season, Button is currently 25 points adrift of championship leader Mark Webber, with three other drivers in between him and the Australian.

Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel and McLaren team-mate Lewis Hamilton are all currently closer to the points leader than Button is.

However, the 30-year-old has seen how quickly the title picture can change in recent races and thinks the tables could turn on any of the five contenders.

"There's still everything to play for because one bad race can cost you a lot of points," Button said.

"That's still a very small gap, and compared to the two in front (Hamilton and Vettel), I'm only four and five points behind, so that is very close.

"Mark and Fernando have a bit of an advantage, but come the next few races, who knows who is going to be on top."

Button is now a clear outsider, though, and will likely have to rely on others to slip up in order to be crowned champion at the end of the season.

He added: "The fact there are still so many involved does makes it more difficult, but it is the same for all of us you could say.

"It also makes it more fun because you don't know who is going to come out on top, who is going to score big. You really don't know who you are watching out for.

"Trying to cover people in a race is tricky because there are four guys you are fighting against."

Aggressive approach for Jenson Button

Button and the four other championship contenders are separated by just 24 points heading into the year's long-haul finish as drivers face five fly-away races in Singapore, Japan, Korea, Brazil and Abu Dhabi.

It is a mouthwatering prospect which leaves no margin for error as the smallest mistake could have significant consequences when it comes to the final shake-up.

Button, however, also appreciates he can leave no stone unturned in his quest to become the first Briton to win back-to-back titles, and with different teams after claiming the crown with Brawn GP last year.

From his personal perspective, 22 points behind championship leader Mark Webber and 17 adrift of team-mate Lewis Hamilton, Button is relishing his role of hunter this season compared to a year ago when he was the hunted.

"It's a great feeling, it really is," Button told Press Association Sport ahead of this weekend's race around the Marina Bay street circuit in Singapore.

"If you'd have said to me last year, if I'd been 10 points behind, 'you're attacking for the last five races', I would say 'no, I'm not, because I don't have a car to do that'.

"But this year I do. I've a very competitive car, and although the next race will be more tricky for us, I'm attacking and it's exciting.

"I'm not going to sit back and hope for a good result or try and be consistent. I did that over the second half of last year and mentally it's very tough.

"But when you're behind and you're chasing and you have a good car, you can be more aggressive, and for me every race I go into I have to be aggressive. I can't sit back and hope to get good points."

At least Button is relishing the prospect of returning to Singapore this weekend as he feared a year ago his title dreams were slipping away at the Far East venue.

"The end of the year was so tough for me," added Button.

"In Singapore I remember saying on the in-lap in qualifying 'we've thrown this championship away', but this year I go there excited.

"I still finished fifth, even though I qualified 11th. I just won't make it that hard on myself this time.

"But yeah, I'm excited. You've two Brits who are fighting it out, so we should be happy."

The stress levels are one of the noticeable elements considerably different for the 30-year-old, who said: "I don't feel like I'm under any pressure at all, it's quite weird.