![]() ![]() ![]() In the Hungarian Grand Prix, Webber lost two kilograms in weight over the race as he was forced to drive without a drink after his water bottle broke. Webber was unable to score any more points for the remainder of the year, with his best result coming in France, where he finished 8th. He, along with Yoong, was forced to pull out of the Spanish Grand Prix due to potentially dangerous wing failures during the weekend. Webber was forced into retirement in the Malaysian Grand Prix after a electrical fault, before picking up consecutive 11th-place finishes at Brazil and San Marino. The result made him, the fourth Australian F1 driver to score World Championship points, the first Australian to score points on debut and the first in a car Minardi to score points since Marc Gené in the European Grand Prix in 1999. This was his first race of an initial three race contract and it was extended until the end of the season after his first race where he finished fifth after avoiding the Schumacher and Barrichello spectacular accident with the aftermath forcing eight cars to retire from the race. Webber officialy made his Formula One debut at his home GP. He has experience at the Le Mans 24 hour race and, on top of that, he's been a Porsche enthusiast for many years.Formula One Career Minardi 2002 "Mark is without doubt one of the world's best race drivers. "I'm very pleased to have secured Mark Webber for our LMP1 project as one of the best and most successful Formula 1 pilots of our time," said Wolfgang Hatz, Porsche board member for research and development. ![]() Webber will also compete in the World Endurance Championship for Porsche. On both occasions, he escaped injury, but said he would never return to Le Mans because of the danger involved. The following year, an aerodynamic flaw in the Mercedes car caused him to flip on two separate occasions at more than 200mph. He was on pole position in 1998 only for the car he shared with Germans Klaus Ludwig and Bernd Schneider to retire after just 19 laps. He has raced at Le Mans twice before - with Mercedes in 19. Webber will now spearhead Porsche's attempt to revive its glory days at Le Mans, a race it has won 16 times, the last in 1998. For another, he decided against a move to Ferrari last year partly because he felt that the effort of getting used to a new environment was not worth it given of his limited time left in the sport. Webber could have gone to another top team - at least one approached him - but he felt that would be the wrong thing to do.įor one thing, Red Bull has produced the fastest car in F1 since 2009. He also recognised that, even if he stayed on for another year, his time in the sport was running out. Webber is 37 this August, an age that, for a Formula 1 driver, he has admitted is "long in the tooth in some people's eyes". He has also been critical of the Pirelli tyres that F1 teams have been forced to use since 2011, claiming their rapidly degrading nature prevents drivers pushing to the limit throughout a race. Webber considered staying with Red Bull for another season, but, with a big change in regulations next year that will dramatically alter the demands of F1, he has decided to seek a fresh challenge. "Whether he retires, only he will choose, but Mark is definitely a candidate for 2014," said Mateschitz in April. Webber, who has often felt he has not benefited from the same support that Vettel enjoys from Red Bull motorsport adviser Helmut Marko, was furious, prompting talk that he would leave the team at the end of 2013.īut Red Bull boss Dietrich Mateschitz, with whom Webber has always had a close relationship, made it clear he could stay on if he wanted to. ![]() The German initially apologised after the race, but subsequently said he would do the same thing again. The tension between the two drivers has boiled over on several occasions during their five years as team-mates, most recently at this season's Malaysian Grand Prix, when Vettel ignored a direct team order not to overtake Webber to win the race. With a reputation as a tough but fair competitor, plus a direct and honest approach to the media, Webber's time at Red Bull has been characterised by an uneasy relationship with Vettel. His best season was 2010, when he led the championship for much of the year before faltering in the final three races, falling behind team-mate Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso. In 12 years in F1, Webber, who also drove for Minardi, Jaguar and Williams, has won nine grands prix, achieved 36 podium finishes, 11 pole positions, 15 fastest laps and twice finished third in the World Championship. I can hardly wait to pilot one of the fastest sports cars in the world." He added: "I'm very much looking forward to this new challenge after my time in Formula 1. Teams: Minardi, Jaguar, Williams, Red Bull ![]()
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