Formula One driver Jenson Button has addressed the revelation that Sir Richard Branson once touched his then-girlfriend Jessica Michibata's face, making her feeling uncomfortable. Appearing on Thursday's This Morning, the sportsman was asked to comment on the incident, which he shared in his new autobiography, Life to the Limit, Mr Button. "This is why I wrote a book as it's my story in my words and certain snippets aren't take out and put into a newspaper," he shared. "But obviously that does happen. It was a long time ago and Richard apologised. He didn't drink for six months afterwards."
Jenson Button and Jessica Michibata married in 2014 but split a year later
In the book, Jenson claimed that the Virgin CEO had flirted with Japanese model Jessica, who he married in 2014 but divorced one year later. "Although Jessica was a model she was quite shy, so this was making her feel uncomfortable," an extract published in The Telegraph states. "Especially when Sir Richard followed up his blatant flirting by putting his hand on her face. 'Hold on,' I said, 'that's enough. That's well out of order.' But he was so hammered that he simply didn't understand what the problem was."
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© Photo: RexThe F1 driver revealed Richard Branson apologised
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When pressed to comment on the incident, which occurred at Nobu during the Australian Grand Prix in 2009, Jenson added: "I did not expect that, truthfully. Yeah, but I do feel for him a little bit." Sir Richard has also talked about the incident in his own autobiography, Finding My Virginity. "Jenson and his girlfriend were sitting at the next table, enjoying a far quieter evening as he had to race the next morning," he wrote, via MailOnline. "By contrast, through a mixture of tiredness, jetlag and drink, I soon found myself very, very inebriated. This wasn't like me; I can't remember ever getting that drunk before or since." The British entrepreneur decribed how he walked over to the couple's table and told Jessica "how gorgeous she was". He added: "Jenson understandable took offence and I decided to retreat quickly from the table (thankfully, we smoothed it out)."
