Williams Formula 1 chief Claire Williams says the team won't wait around for Jenson Button to make a decision on his future with McLaren before deciding its line-up for 2017.
Button, 36, is out of contract with McLaren at the end of the season, and has been linked with a return to Williams, the team he made his F1 debut with back in 2000.
Williams has mooted an interest in Button previously, with chief technical officer Pat Symonds recently saying that there was an "affection" for the Briton at the team.
McLaren is weighing up whether to continue with Button alongside Fernando Alonso for 2017, or draft in junior driver Stoffel Vandoorne. However, no decision will be made by McLaren and group CEO Ron Dennis until later in the year.
Speaking to Press Association, deputy team principal Claire Williams said that the team will not wait around for Button or McLaren to make a decision before deciding on its own plans for next season.
"We will own our driver line-up decision, and I am not sat here waiting for Ron Dennis to make his decision or for Jenson to make his decision," Williams said.
“It it is not about what other people are doing. I am not going to be waiting around because that is just not the right mentality for a team like ours to have.
“It would be a great story, but he has to make the right choice for him, and we have to make the right choice for the team."
Williams is known to be considering a number of drivers for its 2017 line-up as Felipe Massa nears the exit. Besides Button, GP2 driver Alex Lynn, Formula 3's Lance Stroll and Force India's Sergio Perez are all thought to be in the running for a seat alongside Valtteri Bottas, who is expected to remain at Williams for 2017.
