London - They tied the knot less than a year ago and have spent their short married life living on opposite sides of the world.
Now Formula 1 star Jenson Button and his model wife Jessica Michibata have officially split.
They married in a small but lavish ceremony in Hawaii in December 2014 after a 10 month engagement, but since their wedding they have seemingly struggled to juggle their careers and relationship, with Button, 35, revealing just a few months ago they were still not living together.
He’s been based in his bachelor pad in Monaco while following a gruelling schedule racing all over the world for McLaren, while Michibata, one of Japan’s top models, is said to have spent much of her time in a modest Tokyo flat with her mother.
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On Wednesday a representative for Button said: “Jenson and Jessica have decided to go their separate ways and it’s very amicable. There is no one else involved.”
It is reported that they wed without a pre-nuptial agreement, and will have discussions about Button’s estimated £35 million (R790 million) income.
The last pictures of the couple together were taken nearly two months ago, when Button uploaded of a snap of them celebrating his wife’s 31st birthday in Los Angeles.
Michibata, born to an Argentine father and a Japanese mother, was already a successful model before she met Button, earning a reported £2 million (R45 million) a year working for brands including TAG Heuer and L’Oreal.
Nine months into their marriage Button admitted their lives had hardly changed, confessing: “We don’t see each other any more than before we were married.”
Painting a picture of their unconventional relationship, the former World champion said: “Jessie still works a lot in Japan.
“She enjoys her job, she models, she had a television show and has just done a Japanese film. She enjoys working, which is great, but obviously it means that we don’t see each other very often. We’re definitely not settled in Monaco together, not yet.
“I’m travelling so much with racing, I can’t say, ‘I’m going to have a weekend off from Formula 1 and come to Japan and see you.’ It just doesn’t happen like that with sport.”
‘I HAVE TO BE SELFISH’
He said that she was able to make it to “half” his races, but he is “not the same person” while competing.
He added: “I have to be focused. I am a very different person, and Jessie knows that, and she understands that, as do most of my friends and family.”
Button had also said he did not want children while competing in F1. He said: “It’s not worth the risk. If you start feeling fearful about pushing the car to the limit, you have to stop racing in Formula 1.
“I wouldn’t spend enough time with my children but also you have to be so selfish when it comes to motorsport.”
The couple first met in a hotel bar in Tokyo in 2008 but Michibata was initially reluctant to fall for Button’s charms. Since becoming the youngest British F1 driver at the age of 20, Button had garnered a reputation as a playboy, dating a string of women including Prince Harry’s ex, model Florence Brudenell-Bruce.
When he began dating Michibata she was credited as a calming influence on him. They split briefly in 2011, but Button eventually proposed on Valentine’s Day 2014, with a ring worth £250,000 (R5.7 million).
In August the couple were burgled while on holiday in St Tropez. They believed they had been gassed in their sleep before raiders took Michibata’s engagement ring.