Behind every sporting superstar there is usually a manager, a guiding light through the murkier depths and obfuscations that loom so menacingly on the path to worldwide fame. And many a professional performer has fallen foul of ruthless advantage-takers, money-grabbers, while being blindly concerned only with their own establishment of a dream to be a world-beater.

It is an issue that has spurred Formula One front-runner Jenson Button to become a manager to up-and-coming hopefuls and established stars alike who could need his help and guidance in all branches of sport. He has taken the first steps to what could become his full-time career after his pursuit of Grand Prix glory has lost its gloss for him and he has moved out of the limelight as an action man going to work on the very edge at 200-plus mph.

Never until right now has a Formula One driver sought to represent other aces sharing the same grid, but Button is about to change all that.

The multi-millionaire former champion has set up "The Sports Partnership", a London-based management outfit, with his firm friend and long-time business ally Richard Goddard who has handled all Button's contractual and sponsorship dealings for eight years.

Would they consider managing the career of another F1 driver? "Absolutely," said Goddard," of course Jenson wouldn't want a business relationship with a direct rival — but he would enjoy working with a young guy, somebody who has just come into F1 or who is on the brink."

Approachable

Button, a Grand Prix driver for 12 years and a remarkably fit heptathlete in his spare time, one of the sport's most likeable and approachable figures is not contemplating quitting his £10 million-a-year job (Dh59.5 million) with McLaren just yet and reckons there is at least one more world title in him to match his 2009 achievement. The 31-year-old, 11 times a winner, says: "I fully understand the pressures of being a high profile international sports star and I have learned how to operate with the media and sponsors.

"I am not interested only in working with other race drivers. The lessons and disciplines I have learned in Formula One are applicable across all sports.

"I know how to train, how to eat right and look after myself to keep a top level of fitness and they are all experiences I want to share with other sportsmen who might like ‘The Sports Partnership' to look after their interests."

The writer is a motor sports expert based in England.