The 29-year-old was recognised for his outstanding contribution to British sport after taking six grand prix victories and winning the 2009 Formula 1 world championship.

Jenson said: “I’m incredibly proud to have joined the likes of Mike Hawthorn, Graham Hill, Jim Clark, John Surtees, Sir Jackie Stewart, James Hunt, Nigel Mansell, Damon Hill and Lewis Hamilton as British Formula 1 world champion. But to be recognised by Her Majesty The Queen and the British people is a tremendous honour for me.

“This really is the crowning glory to what has been the most incredible year of my life.

“The past 12 months have provided me with such an exhilarating journey. We literally started with nothing, but had the belief, determination and passion to take on the world and succeed. Everybody at Brawn GP played their part – and it was down to their expertise, dedication and hard work that we were able to achieve so much.

“Many people played a role in my world championship – and in receiving this award, I want to acknowledge and thank them for all their efforts.

“For 2010, I am starting another exciting chapter in my career – and I am already looking forward to representing Great Britain on the world’s sporting stage and successfully defending my world championship.”

This really is the crowning glory to what has been the most incredible year of my life.

- Jenson Button

Ross Brawn will be presented with an OBE (Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) by the Queen. The 55-year-old’s rank, confirmed with the publication of the New Year Honours list on Thursday, is in honour of his 30 years of service to motor sport, culminating in his Brawn GP team winning both drivers’ and constructors’ world championships.

Brawn said, “I am surprised and delighted to receive the award.”

“Receiving this award is a great personal honour for me,” added Brawn, “However, it is only through the dedication and commitment of the many talented people I have worked with and the unstinting support of my family which have led to this award.

“I am very grateful to everyone involved and pleased that the achievements of everyone at Brawn have been recognised in this way.”

Britain’s Lewis Hamilton was awarded the same chivalry rank as Button in last year’s New Year’s Honours list.

Click on the link below to read the full article.

Official Mercedes GP F1 statement:

The MERCEDES GP PETRONAS Formula One Team can confirm today that seven-times Formula One World Champion Michael Schumacher will make his racing return in 2010 with the Silver Arrows team.

With seven Drivers’ World Championships, 248 Grand Prix starts, 91 victories, 154 podium finishes and 68 pole positions, the 40-year old German needs no introduction following an illustrious and record-breaking Formula One career from 1991 to 2006 at the Jordan, Benetton and Ferrari teams.

Michael’s return to racing with MERCEDES GP PETRONAS sees his return to Mercedes-Benz Motorsport where he began his racing apprenticeship as part of the Junior Programme in 1990, racing in Group C sports cars and DTM, and sees Michael renew his partnership with Ross Brawn with whom he won all seven of his World Championships.

Today’s announcement confirms the MERCEDES GP PETRONAS driver line-up for the 2010 season with Michael partnering his compatriot, 24 year old Nico Rosberg, in the Silver Arrows cars.

Michael Schumacher: “MERCEDES GP PETRONAS represents a new challenge for me both in a sporting and a personal context. It is a new chapter in my racing career and I am really looking forward to working with my old friend Ross Brawn and my companions from my days with the Mercedes Junior Programme.

I am convinced that together we will be involved in the fight for the Formula 1 World Championship next year and I am already looking forward to getting back onto the race track. For me, this partnership closes the circle. Mercedes supported me for so many years when I began my Formula 1 career and now I can hopefully give something back to the brand with the star.”

Nico Rosberg: “It is fantastic that Michael is returning to Formula One and will be my team-mate at MERCEDES GP PETRONAS. It’s a great challenge for me to be up against one of the best drivers of all time. I’m sure that we will form a very strong partnership as he will have lost none of his speed! It is also great news for our sport and the fans.”

Ross Brawn, Team Principal of MERCEDES GP PETRONAS: “I am delighted that we can confirm today that Michael will make his much-anticipated return to Formula One next year and drive for our MERCEDES GP PETRONAS team. As seven-time World Champion, Michael’s outstanding record in Formula One speaks for itself and I am looking forward to working with him again.

With the completion of our driver line-up, I believe that we now have the most exciting partnership in Formula One with Michael and Nico, who provide the perfect mix of talent, experience, speed and youth. We can now turn our full attention to the preparations for the new season and everyone at MERCEDES GP PETRONAS is extremely excited about the challenge ahead.

With the investment and support in our team provided by Daimler, Aabar and our new title partner Petronas, and with two such exciting drivers, we have all of the building blocks in place to have another successful season in 2010.”

Norbert Haug, Vice-President of Mercedes-Benz Motorsports: “In April 1991, when I had been in charge of the Mercedes-Benz Motorsport programme for just six months, Michael was standing beside me on the balcony one evening. Without the slightest doubt, he said in a low voice: “It’s about time that I got into Formula 1″.

Michael had just turned 22 years of age and four months later, he made his debut at Spa in a Jordan. Mercedes-Benz helped him to this point and the rest is history: seven World Championship titles, more than any racing driver, 91 Grand Prix wins, more than any racing driver. Michael has more of everything than every other driver. As part of the Mercedes Junior Programme, Michael had raced in Group C sports cars and competed in a few DTM races. Ross Brawn, then our opponent at Jaguar, quickly realised Michael’s talent and they went on to win all seven of his Drivers’ World Championship titles together at Benetton and Ferrari.

Our sporting ambition has always been that Michael should drive again where his professional career had started and Michael knew that. We often joked about it after the races and discussed the prospect seriously several times during the last 14 years in Formula 1. It didn’t happen in 1995, it didn’t happen in 1998 and it didn’t happen in 2005.

I am delighted that it will now happen in 2010. I am very much looking forward to working with Michael and everybody at Mercedes-Benz and Daimler extends a very warm welcome to our ‘apprentice’ of 19 years ago. That apprentice is now the most successful racing driver of all time.”

Schumacher is reported to have signed a 7 million Euro contract for 2010, with the option to extend for a further two years depending on his performance.

BBC F1 reporter Ted Kravitz says seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher is returning to the track with Mercedes as “he felt his life was empty” without the sport, although he said that the ex-F1 champion won’t know that he is truly fit to race until he gets back in a Mercedes formula 1 car in January.

Schumacher said: “The motivation is pretty straightforward. I got a call from Ross (Brawn) at the beginning of November asking me to race again, telling me Mercedes were going to be involved.”

“I’ve never left the race track, and after three years I regained the energy I’m feeling now. After playing around on motorbikes, I’m ready for the serious stuff.”

Schumacher was due to substitute for Felipe Massa after the Brazilian driver was injured last summer, but a neck injury received during a motorbike test in Spain prevented his return.

He now insists this is no longer a problem.

“It is obviously a topic that I understand is questioned, and I want to understand,” Schumacher said. “Before I gave a final okay I made sure that I was sure myself, and I can say 100 per cent the neck is no further issue.

“Unfortunately it was too close to the accident in the summer when I tried for Ferrari, but the time now is enough to have healed completely. I can do everything I used to do, and no problem.”

Lewis Hamilton, the 2008 world champion said of the news “It’s great to have Michael back in Formula One,”

“He is a legend, a really nice guy, and I am happy for him he has again got an opportunity to do the best job in the world – race in Formula One… I used to watch Michael race when I was in the junior categories, and I always hoped I would be in Formula One while he was still around.”

“I’m now really looking forward to seeing him on the track and back at the top. It’s brilliant news, and I wish him my absolute best on his comeback with such a fine team and company as Mercedes-Benz.”

According to Germany’s Bild magazine, Schumacher will sign a one-year contract with the team later next week – he has managed to withdraw from his consulting contract with Ferrari which was supposed to see him focus on developing Ferrari’s road cars during the next 3 years.

Michael has reportedly agreed a 3.5 million Euro deal with the team, representing only a fraction of what he used to make when he drove for Ferrari, but after the 2010 season he will reportedly become long-term ambassador for the Stuttgart based Mercedes-Benz company. It’s a deal which Bild magazine describes as ‘one of the greatest comebacks in sport’, coincidentally in the same week as Tiger Woods takes one of the biggest falls in sport.

The only remaining obstacle is successfully completing the mandatory FIA medical examination, which prevented his return to the cockpit in 2009 after a motorcycling-related neck injury stopped him substituting for former Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa earlier this year.

The 7-time World Champion is set to partner the talented driver Nico Rosberg, and rekindle his successful relationship with team principal Ross Brawn, when he joins the team.

It’s not the first time the German ace has driven for Mercedes though – he joined Mercedes’ junior racing programme in the World Sports-Prototype Championship together with rivals Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Karl Wendlinger – driving the Sauber-Mercedes C11 he finished 5th in the 1990 drivers’ championship and 9th in the 1991 drivers’ championship, before entering Formula 1 that same year with the Jordan-Ford team.

Whilst official spokesperson Sabine Kehm and his manager Willi Weber refused to comment on the news, a source close to Schumacher’s management team said, “The signature is just a formality. Michael feels fit and healthy. The latest (medical) tests were entirely positive. He can’t wait for the return and working with Ross Brawn again”.

We will have to wait a few more days before the deal is officially confirmed.

Mercedes will continue to supply engines to the McLaren team until 2015 at the earliest, however will divest from its 40% stake in McLaren over the next 2 years. Mercedes-Benz have acquired 75.1 per cent of the Brawn F1 team and will rename it Mercedes Grand Prix as it enters its the 2010 season.

During the past weekend World Champion Jenson Button was spotted visiting the McLaren factory after failing to reach agreement in his contractual negotiations with Brawn F1, further encouraging rumours that he is to move to the Woking based F1 team for 2010.

The 29-year-old has reportedly turned down a £4m offer – representing an increase of £1m above his current deal but still less than half of what he had earned with Honda.

Mercedes’s new stake in Brawn could lead to the German-born Niko Rosberg being retained as lead driver, allowing Button to pursue options elsewhere.

“We are speaking with Nick Heidfeld as well,” Haug said. “Mercedes-Benz supports the idea of signing an experienced and capable German driver. There is however no reason to finalise the driver situation too hastily.”

“Mercedes will compete in the F1 world championship next year with its own factory team,” said head of Mercedes cars, Dr Dieter Zetsche.

“This is possible by the agreed acquisition of 75.1 per cent of Brawn GP, 45.1 per cent from Daimler and 30 per cent from our partner Aabar Investments. The rest will be with the current share – Ross Brawn, Nick Fry and other members. The interests of Daimler are aligned therefore it will be a true Mercedes-Benz team.”

“Ross Brawn will continue to be the team principal and thereby we are maintaining his strength. Just like the engine team at Mercedes Benz High Performance Engines, the new Mercedes Benz grand prix team will be co-ordinated by Mercedes Benz Motorsport which is as everybody knows headed by Norbert Haug”, said Dr Zetsche.

Powered by Mercedes-Benz Live will offer visitors the chance to meet Lewis Hamilton, his team-mate Heikki Kovalainen, double World Champion Mika Häkkinen, David Coulthard and Formula 1 team boss Ross Brawn. Formula 1 drivers Pedro de la Rosa and Anthony Davidson, as well as a host of Mercedes-Benz Touring car and Formula 3 drivers, will also be in attendance.

Remarkably the whole event, held at the legendary Brookland circuit – home of Mercedes-Benz World – will be open free to the public, so this promises to be a memorable day out for the whole family.

Highlights of the day include Lewis driving his MP4-23 – the car in which he memorably won the 2008 Formula 1 Drivers’ World Championship. Ross Brawn will also be on hand to showcase his team’s groundbreaking Brawn Mercedes BGP 001, driven by Brawn GP test driver, Anthony Davidson.

The British DTM drivers Susie Stoddart, Jamie Green, Paul Di Resta and Gary Paffett will attend and demonstrate their 500hp V8 AMG Mercedes C-Classes pounding around the circuit at Mercedes-Benz World. Like all the drivers in attendance, they will sign autographs and spend as much time with fans as possible.

Formula 3 Euro Series hotshot Sam Bird returns to Brooklands to demonstrate his Dallara Mercedes, and in the coming weeks Mercedes promise that even more will be added to this already action-packed line-up.

Visitors will be able to register for hot laps in the Mercedes AMGs, and passenger rides at the Off-Road 4×4 centre, or enter the Blindfold Driving Challenge and a fun smart fortwo Egg & Spoon Challenge.

The event is on Sunday 8th November at Brookland, Surrey and if you’d like to attend you need to to register for free entry at www.mercedes-benzworld.co.uk.

Speaking to Mercedes PR Manager, Rob Halloway, he said “..the day itself is a great chance to get up close with these drivers, and the free of charge tickets mean that every guest is a VIP!”.

Sounds like a great way to conclude the motorsport year.