Red Bulletin: Webber retiring at end of Season

F1's Elder Statesman and flagship Australian is to bow out of F1 at the end of the 2013 season. Mark's resilient and proud personality are very unique to the paddock, being one of the most truthful, and hardy, yet unlucky men in the sport. Webber, along with Raikkonen, has been my favourite driver in the sport ever since 2007 when he joined Red Bull, and he has come extremely close to the championship in recent years.

Webber's F1 career started in 2002 with a plucky little team called Minardi. They were the darling of many fans, a complete minnows team, underfunded and uncompetitive for the most part. However, in his first ever race, in his and team owner Paul Stoddart's home country, he score an incredible 5th place finish. This was remarkable for several reasons:
- It was Webber's debut race
- His car had a differential problem very early in the race
- Points were only awarded to the top 6 finishers at this point
- He had to fend of former-Ferrari driver Mika Salo at the end of the race

However he held his nerve and finished about 5 second ahead of the Finn. The result was so amazing and well-loved by the F1 community, that people ushered Webber and Stoddart to the podium, where they were donated champagne to celebrate what is surely the team's best ever result (despite three 4th-placed finishes in the early 90s)

Advance Australia Fair!

Webber's time with Minardi was short, and after that cracking start, didn't score a single point for the rest of the season. He moved on to Jaguar in 2003, and though the car was unreliable, he managed to score seven times. he stayed there for 2004, before the team was sold off to Red Bull. He jumped ship to Williams just as they were coming off the boil from their competitiveness in the early 2000s. The 2005 season was his best at the time, scoring highly with team mate Nick Heidfeld, and getting his first podium, at Monaco. Many speculated he'd be successful at Williams, including Technical Director Sam Michael who thought he would win the World Championship. These predictions did not come to fruition, though.

2006 was a dreadful season; the car was uncompetitive and he only managed 7 points all season. This was due, mainly, to BMW's switch to Sauber which left Williams with cheap and feeble Cosworth engines. He left at the end of the season to begin building up and advancing what would become the world-beating team of the moment, Red Bull Racing. He partnered David Coulthard for 2007 and 2008 in a very strong driver line-up. Webber was on course for a cracking second place finish in Japan 2007. The race was a washout and the Safety car led Hamilton, Webber and a very young Vettel around Fuji Speedway, but Seb was unsighted and whacked into Mark's gearbox, taking them both out. The pairing of Webber and Coulthard managed a smattering of points and a podium each before DC retired in 2008.

2009 was Webber's chance to lead the team with a fledgeling superstar to nurture, but it didn't go quite that way and Vettel ended up overshadowing him, taking the team's first two victories in China and Britain. Elation came at the Nurburgring in 2009 though, and Webber took his first ever victory. This Video depicts his sheer joy in a musical manner. He won again in Brazil 2009 and finished 4th in the championship.

Webber's form peaked in 2010, as did his grinning frequency

2010 was probably his best crack at the Championship, where he challenged right 'til the end of the year. He took back-to-back wins in Spain and Monaco, then had that nasty business with Sebastian Vettel in Canada. After that point of no return in their relationship (which only deteriorated afterwards) Webber had to battle his team as well as other competitors, and picked up two more wins, in Britain and Hungary. He had a spin in Korea that ended his race, and was the point where his Championship fell away, and he succumbed to the power of Vettel and Alonso, both of whom finished ahead of him in Abu Dhabi, and therefore the championship.

By contrast, the 2011 season was not a good one for Webber. Although his speed was not lacking, he had to watch his teammate notch up 11 victories before he could claim his only one of the season in Brazil. This re-affirmed the belief that there is a tendency towards Vettel in the Red Bull sumpremos. And you can't blame them in part - Vettel had already managed two World Championships by the age of 25, the age that Webber started his first race. There is no language barrier either, between the Austrian Drinks company and the young German. Imagine the Salzburg-based team trying to decipher Mark's gravelly Aussie tones. However, the team should take heed that not all alliances between Germany and Austria are successful. Ahem. Don't mention the war, Basil...

2012 was the most unpredictable, perhaps ever. No single clear contender emerged out of the first seven races with the seven different winners. Webber was the sixth of those, winning in Monaco. He won again in Britain and along with Alonso, was the clear favourite for the title, but his second half of the season was disappointing, retiring in Italy due to huge flat spots on tyres, The US because of an alternator failure, and was taken out by Romain Grosjean in Abu Dhabi.

2013 looks to be much the same so far, outright speed and righteousness, but severe bad luck. He finished a decent sixth in Australia (he rarely finishes so highly at his home race) but was cruelly robbed of a victory in Malaysia when Vettel ignored team orders and passed him, and in China, after tangling with Daniel Ricciardo, one of his wheels fell off and he retired. The last two races in Monaco and Canada have been good though, with a podium in the principality and fourth in Montreal. How the rest of the season will go remains unknown. He is unlikely to take the drivers' championship this year, but wouldn't it be lovely is he could get one more win, to make it a nice round ten?

Whatever happens this year, we already know what he's doing in 2014. He'll be racing for Porsche's LMP1 squad in the World Endurance Championships (WEC) and aiming towards participating in next year's 24 Hours of Le Mans.

"I'm very much looking forward to this new challenge after my time in Formula 1. I can hardly wait to pilot one of the fastest sports cars in the world."

A prototype of the Porsche he'll be racing next year

Some people might see Endurance racing as a step down from F1 but the two are parallel in terms of prestige, F1 is just more well-known. He's no stranger to closed-cockpits either, as he took part in Le Mans in 1998 and 1999 although his team's car failed to finish.

I wish him all the best in his future endeavours. This brilliant bloke will be missed by the entire paddock without a doubt, and the fight over his seat will be a very interesting story this season.
Mark, me old Cobber, good luck in the future!

Canadian Conundrums

The Circuit de Gilles Villeneueve is one of the most popular venues on the F1 circuit and as we enter round 7 of the season, there is plenty to talk about.

The subject that dominates many pub-level F1 conversations is Mercedes' allegedly illegal Tyre Testing. Pirelli invited the whole paddock to a tyre test in Barcelona a week after the race there. Mercedes infamously fell down the order in that race, so it would have seemed that a tyre test would benefit them. So did it? The rules stipulate that a team cannot take part in a tyre test with a current car, and rivals such as Red Bull and Ferrari are claiming that that is what the team did. Also, they used their current drivers (Hamilton and Rosberg)  rather than test and reserve drivers such as Brendon Hartley and Ant Davidson.

Pirelli advised Motorsport Director Paul Hembery to sit out Friday's team conference for legal reasons, as a tribunal will soon take place to clarify the matter. Whatever the result, it looks like the company will be in hot water, and the dispute looks set to rumble on along the rest of the season.

I remember a time when tyres didn't play such a pivotal and brain-aching role...ah Bridgestone...
Ahem. Anyway yes, back to the racing. Friday morning in Canada saw low pressure and soggy conditions. The cars started with wet tyres in FP1, soon upgrading to Intermediates, and by the end of the sessions, dry tyres were viable. Paul di Resta impressively took the honour of fastest time in FP1, the first time he's managed that distinction. FP2 was dry, and the track continued to improve with rubber being applied and water evaporating. It was Alonso who topped the sheets in Practice Two, as Ferrari tested a clutch of new upgrades; they certainly seemed to be paying off.

In the final, damp practice session it was Webber who topped the sheets, beating Adrian Sutil by three tenths. Saturday afternoon saw showers and in Qualifying, timing was going to be key. The track improved, and fell away in Q1, so those who set their times in the middle part of the session were best-placed. Paul di Resta was not one of them. He just so happened to be in the pits at the crucial moment, and was gutted to be knocked out in Q1 again, just like in Monaco.

Car eliminated after Q1 (With penalties applied)
17) di Resta
18) Pic
19) Bianchi
20) Chilton
21) van der Garde
22) Grosjean (10-place penalty for incident in Monaco)

Q2 was met with heavier rainfall and the times reflected this. Several drivers went off the track, including Felipe Massa who slithered off the track and into the barriers at an impact of 6G. The Brazilian had two hefty shunts in Monaco, and this heavy slide won't do anything to impress his Ferrari superiors. Whether or not he'll be in a red car next season, it brought out the flag of that colour and paused Q2 for ten minutes. There is a saying in motor racing that rain levels the playing field, and it certainly rang true here; with Massa and both McLarens falling from the session.

Cars eliminated after Q2
11) Ricciardo*
12) Perez
13) Maldonado
14) Button
15) Gutierrez
16) Massa

The final top 10 shootout looked to be extremely interesting and there were some unusual names in the mix. After languishing out of the points for the first six races, Williams hoped to have a change in fortune, courtesy of their fantastic rookie Valtteri Bottas. The Finn took advantage of the watery track, and put his car on the second row of the grid. Vettel headed the field, but 3-times Canadian GP winner Hamilton was not far behind.

The Final Top Ten
1) Vettel
2) Hamilton
3) Bottas
4) Rosberg
5) Webber
6) Alonso
7) Vergne
8) Sutil
9) Hulkenberg
10) Raikkonen*

* NOTE - After qualifying both Raikkonen and Ricciardo were given 2-place grid penalties as they started Qualifying's session 2 from the left of the pitlane, rather than the fast lane. That gave them a head start and enabled Raikkonen to get track position ahead of Webber's Red Bull.

No more rain, Sunday in Canada was delightfully dry.
At the start, Webber and Rosberg overwhelmed Bottas. The rookie drove calmly and professionally, inexperience was not showing. Unfortunately, the car's lack of performance, and he succumbed to Fernando Alonso by the end of the lap as well. A couple of laps later their team mates locked horns, with the recovering Felipe Massa barging past Pastor Maldonado.

Bottas continued to tuble. The plucky Finn had timed his lap to perfection in Q3 and was a well-deserved 3rd, but his uncompetitive Williams was not up to the task of staying with the front runners. He was in 7th, when on Lap 6 Adrian Sutil attempted to pass him at turn 3. It's not a usual overtaking spot, and when the German realised there wasn't enough room, he took to desperate avoiding action by crossing his arms and executing a perfect spin.

Quick reactions saved a potentially messy incident

He recovered to a full 360 degree rotation, and lost half a dozen places. Amazingly, everyone behind reacted in time, and avoided the Force India, so there was no damage. That was, until, Pastor Maldonado forgot where his brake pedal was, and clipped the back of Adrian's car. The rear wing of his, and the front wing of Pastor's cars both took minor damage, but both continued.

Crashtor strikes again

I don't often say this about Formula One races, but I found this one a bit dull in the middle. As the strategies took their time to fall into place, I just wasn't excited enough.

 On Lap 37, perennial backmarker Geido van der Garde managed to spin himself on Mark Webber's car. As the quite clearly faster Red Bull sauntered through the hairpin, the Dutchman didn't leave enough space, and was fortuitous not to collide with the barrier. They are the two tallest drivers in the sport, but driving ability does not seem to be inherent to all lofty peddlers.

Caught off-Garde... Geido caused a headache for Webber

 It ripped off the whole of Webber's left endplate on his front wing, but the hinderage didn't seem so great, as he was able to keep up with the pace of the other leaders. None the less, the team opted to change the wing later on.

I don't wish to cast aspersions on Geido, he's a speedy driver for sure, he's been pretty damn successful in junior formulae. However, it seems to me that he gets a bit... excited. When he qualified an impressive 14th in Monaco, he seemed to get flustered, and he whacked into the back of Maldonado on Lap 1. He was running ahead of the rest of the 'young teams' in Canada (a distinction usually held by Jules Bianchi) so hopefully that's the end of the pattern. Although it's admirable for him to take every small gain with such enthusiasm, we can't have drivers spinning out because they're so excited that they grabbed 12th place. Moving on...

As Nico Hulkenberg went to put another lap on the Caterham, van der Garde moved over, damaging the suspension of Nico's car, and the front wing of his own. The move put Hulkenberg out and he pulled over in the first sector.

 van der Garde judged the situation to be salvageable, though, and he tried to drag his pummeled Caterham back for repairs. Unsurprisingly, he had to call it a day on the side of the track.

In the closing stages the Ferraris were the ones to watch. Massa was chasing the tail end of the points, furiously hounding Grosjean for 10th, surpassing the McLarens, and later on pouncing on Kimi Raikkonen's 8th place. However the more intense battle was that for second. Alonso had chase Hamilton for 5 laps or so, and breathed down the Brit's neck. On lap 63 he finally squeezed past to secure second place, and confirmed that Hamilton's 1-stop was not quite there. Hamilton chased Fernando to the flag, surprisingly, but it was in vain. Almost forgotten about, Vettel won the Canadian GP for the first time in his career.

"That makes up for two years ago!" - Christan Horner

It was hard to imagine that Vettel had never won in Montreal and the win was definitely satisfying. His adversary in 2011's race was Jenson Button, and what a dreadful weekend it was for his team. It was the first non-points scoring race for McLaren since Abu Dhabi 2009, and the alarm bells should be ringing in the Woking base.

He's still in this race? Vettel's victory was enormous - 20 seconds!

Lap Leaders
S Vettel 1-17
L Hamilton 18-20
S Vettel 21-70

Finishing Positions
1. S Vettel, Red Bull
2. F Alonso, Ferrari
3. L Hamilton, Mercedes AMG
4. M Webber, Red Bull
5. N Rosberg, Mercedes AMG
6. JE Vergne, Toro Rosso
7. P di Resta
8. F Massa, Ferrari
9. K Raikkonen, Lotus
10. A Sutil, Force India
11. S Perez, McLaren
12. J Button, McLaren
13. R Grosjean, Lotus
14. V Bottas, Williams
15. D Ricciardo, Toro Rosso
16. P Maldonado, Williams
17. J Bianchi, Marussia
18. C Pic, Caterham
19. M Chilton, Marussia

Out/Unclassified
E Gutierrez, Sauber (Spun Off)
N Hulkenberg, Sauber (Collision Damage)
G van der Garde, Caterham (Collision Damage)

Let us spare a thought for Mark Robinson. He was a marshall at the Canadian GP who sadly died. He was part of the crew recovering Esteban Gutierrez' stricken Sauber which crashed at turn 1. A recovery vehicle hit Robinson, and ran over him. He later died on his was to hospital.

These men enable all the drivers to race safely and without problems, and their bravery and commitment is sometimes taken for granted. Robinson's sad death is the first at a Grand Prix event since Australia 2001, when Graham Beveridge was hit with pieces from debris in a crash between Jacques Villeneueve and Ralf Schumacher. The entire Formula One community sends its sincerest condolences to the family of Mark Robinson.

Manic-o Monaco

What needs to be said? It's Monaco! The jewel of the calendar. Winning here will set you into the history books without fail, and as one of the most challenging and nerve-racking events on the calendar, concentration is key. It's one of the quickest laps on the calendar, with pole position usually the third fastest time of the year, behind Canada and Brazil. The lap negotiates some incredibly tight turns, with the armcoe barriers ready to punish the hasty.

It comes as no surprise then, that there were several crashes throughout practice. Romain Grosjean suffered not one, but two crashes at the infamous Saint Devote corner, and then a third at the Nouvelle Chicane.

You'd almost think he had a loyalty card to hitting the barriers - 10
crashes or more in a season to get a FREE cup of coffee!

Adrian Sutil got out of shape on his way up the hill and grinded against the barrier at Massenet. The biggest crash though, was that of Felipe Massa; he locked up going into turn one and had a huge impact with the armco, and then the tec-pro barriers. The Ferrari was trashed.

Felipe's 'Massa-ive' shunt was blamed on driver error.

After clear running on Thursday's practice sessions (Remember, no Friday practice in Monaco!) Saturday saw intermittent drizzle and looming grey clouds. Clearly, tyre choice at the right time was going to sort everyone out. Almost everyone was out on track at the start of the session to try and get a 'banker' lap in.

Note - Massa's crash in P3 was so great that his car was not repaired in time. Therefore, he started 21st. Bianchi suffered an engine failure at the very start of Q1, and Chilton got a 5-place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change.

Sacre Bleu(wn Engine) - Jules' pseudo-home race didn't start well.

Cars Eliminated after Q1
17) di Resta
18) Pic
19) Gutierrez`
20) Massa (No Time)
21) Chilton 
      Bianchi (No Time, originally 20th, but started from pitlane)

It wouldn't be Monaco if there weren't unpredictabilities. In Q2 the rain began to stop, and the call for dry tyres was not far off. Those who put the tyres on in time, got right up amongst the top. Romain Grosjean was caught napping after being one of the fastest drivers in Q1, and languished in 13th

Cars Eliminated after Q2
11) Hulkenberg
12) Ricciardo
13) Grosjean
14) Bottas
15) van der Garde
16) Maldonado 

The rain returned briefly in between Q2 and Q3, but it didn't dampen the spirits of the remaining top 10, not least those of Jean-Eric Vergne, who got into Q3 for (I think I'm right in saying) the first time in his career. The Mercedes of of Rosberg and Hamilton locked out the front row, with the Red Bulls snapping at their exhausts in 3rd and 4th.

The final top ten
1) Rosberg
2) Hamilton
3) Vettel
4) Webber
5) Raikkonen
6) Alonso
7) Perez
8) Sutil
9) Button
10) Vergne

As race day dawned, the soggy conditions that persisted on Saturday were all but forgotten; instead in its place was glorious riviera sunshine.

Rosberg led off the start, keeping Hamilton at bay, and only keeping the lead from Vettel due to Monaco's tight nature. A first-corner calamity is usually on the cards in the principality, but everyone scrambled round turn one safely. The harmony was broken shortly after though, Adrian Sutil came unstuck and hit the back of Jenson Button at the Loews Hairpin. Perhaps distracted by his flukey qualifying position of 15th, Geido van der Garde collided with Pastor Maldonado -- both drivers pitted for fresh carbon fiber at the end of the lap.

Rosberg and Hamilton backed up the pack in the early laps, following the monstrous tyre usage of the W04. The feats of Spain were not wanted to be repeated, where the Silver Arrows locked out the front row and went backwards.  Nothing terribly eventful happened until Lap 9, when Charles Pic's Caterham got a bit fiery. The Frenchman crawled round to just next to the pit entry though, and the Marshalls were able to clear his car in next to no time.

He was so close to the pits that he didn't need to be 'Pic'ked up. Okay, I'll stop with the puns.

Lap 26 saw the first meaningful overtake of the race from one of the drivers of the weekend, Paul di Resta. He, and indeed Adrian Sutil are showing what a competitive fighter the VJM06 is with some excellent performances. If I may digress for a moment, I can see Force India challenging McLaren all the way to the end of the season, as the front four teams begin to take their stranglehold on the championships. Anywho, di Resta passed Felipe Massa at Saint Devote. It followed use of the KERS and DRS by the Scot, and although it was at the time only for 15th place, he had just pitted.

Worryingly, Massa had not yet pitted, and was in 16th place in position. The Brazilian had not made up the ground he needed to after his no-show in Qualifying, but things were not about to improve. Towards the end of Lap 30 - one lap after pitting - Felipe hurtled towards turn 1, and in a Carbon copy of his crash (the two are scarily similar) he careered into same bit of Armco barrier jutting out of the track, before slamming sideways into the Saint Devote wall of shame.

Poorly little Ferrari :(

Better safe than sorry, Felipe has his neck checked over.

Felipe was a little hurt by the incident and a precautionary head restraint was applied by the famously brilliant Monaco Stewards. They're well known for their speed in clearing up incidents and bits of broken Carbon Fibre, but due to the magnitude of the crash, the Safety Car had to help them out.

The timing of the Safety Car was crucial - it picked up third placed Vettel rather than the leading Mercedes cars, and Bernd Maylander (SC Driver for those not in the know) had to wave the entire field through before picking Nico back up. At the time of deployment, Hamilton was sat 3 seconds behind his team mate. By the time he got to the pits, he was nearly FIVE times that, after cruising back to the pits. Maybe he was yacht-spotting in the Harbour. The calamity meant that both Red Bulls (who had already made their designated stops) zipped past the Brit in the pitlane, and threw away the chances of a Silver Arrow 1-2.

After seven long laps the Safety Car came back in, and Rosberg managed to restart well, etching out a second or so margin over Vettel. Their team mates had a near miss at Rascasse, Hamilton dived down the inside of an unaware Webber, but the Aussie didn't yeild, and they passed through Anthony Noghues corner in the order before.

Kimi Raikkonen had made quite the train of cars behind him. His Lotus was noticeably nervous on its tyres. Coming into the hairpin, Alonso bunched up behind the Finn. That cause Button to sneak down Alonso's inside. The McLaren could not quite disappear fast enough, and slight contact was made. The move didn't damage anyone, but lost momentum for Jenson, and coming into the Nouvelle chicane, he was pipped by his young Mexican counterpart.

Inter-team squabbles can cost you dearly... Careful boys.

Sergio was not content with overtaking one World Champion, and just a lap later challenged Alonso in exactly the same fashion. The move did not stick. Perez made the move, but Alonso cut across the chicane to avoid a collision. The move caught up with him later in the race, though, and he was ordered to let him back past.

On lap 46 the red flag was seen for the first time of the season. Coming towards the Tabac corner, Max Chilton moved across in front of Pastor Maldonado and launched the Venezuelan into the barrier at a sickening speed. He was fine, but his car, Bianchi's, and indeed the track were not. The TecPro barrier was ripped from its holding ties, and surrounded the Williams car in a plastic cocoon, blocking the track and warranting the suspension of the race.

The Marussia's front wing actually deformed under itself rather than snapping.

The flying... Venezuelan? Doesn't quite have the same ring to it as Flying Finn.

The track was once again quickly cleared and the race resumed to start from Lap 46. The restart saw agonisingly close following of cars ahead, but everyone remained well-behaved. Adrian Sutil barged past Jenson Button at the hairpin to snatch 8th place. The German's bold driving was extremely impressive, and his opportunism soon increased, as he made the same move on Alonso moments later.

Life in F1 is always tough for the little teams, but Monaco was a dreadful weekend for Marussia. After Bianchi's engine failure in Qualifying and Chilton's gearbox change, they already started from the very back of the field. After The Chilton-Maldonado incident, which damaged both Marussia cars, you would think that their luck would improve, but Jules suffered a brake problem, and locked his steering up, coming to a rest in the barriers at turn one.

Further up the field another Frenchman was having difficulties. He had three crashes in Practice, and now a fourth with Daniel Ricciardo called time on proceedings. He shunted the rear of the Toro Rosso, putting the Australian out on the spot, and Romain retiring a lap later. After a superb performance in Bahrain, it appeared that the old, rash, clumsy Grosjean was back, quite a pity.

Heh, more like RAMain Grosjean. Am I right?

Romain's team mate then had a collision at the same place, but in this circumstance the Lotus was not to blame. Sergio Perez' ruthless tactic of jamming his car down the inside at Nouvelle finally stopped paying off - Kimi turned into the normal racing line, and Checo made contact with the Iceman and the wall. It left Kimi with a slow puncture, and after an excruciating crawl back to the pits, he was dropped well outside of the points.

The Mexican did not come out of the collision unharmed either. His car refused to turn at Rascasse on Lap 74, and when he tried to make it into the pits for repairs, his team mate inadvertently blocked his path. Sergio pulled over and retired.

With all the collisions, overtakes and incidents behind the leaders, everyone had rather forgotten the Mercedes and Red Bulls streaking ahead. Their nearest competitor was Adrian Sutil, my personal choice for driver of the day. Kimi Raikkonen overcame his adversity, and flung himself back into 10th place after being down in 13th with just a few laps to go. This continues his run of points-scoring finishes, and he is just two races away from taking the consistency title from Michael Schumacher.

The latter few laps provided calm and order, and Nico Rosberg led the field round to take his second career victory, and his first in the Principality. He also makes history, as his father Keke won here in 1983 exactly thirty years ago. At long last, the qualifying speed of the Mercedes translated into a victory, and it just happened to be the most glamorous and prestigious race of all.

Euphoric Rosberg celebrates second ever victory.

Lap Leaders
Rosberg (1-78)

Finishing Positions
1) N Rosberg, Mercedes AMG
2) S Vettel, Red Bull
3) M Webber, Red Bull
4) L Hamilton, Mercedes AMG
5) A Sutil, Force India
6) J Button, McLaren
7) F Alonso, Ferrari
8) JE Vergne, Toro Rosso
9) P di Resta, Force India
10) K Raikkonen, Lotus
11) N Hulkenberg, Sauber
12) V Bottas, Williams
13) E Gutierrez, Sauber
14) M Chilton, Marussia
15) G van der Garde, Caterham

Out/Unclassified
S Perez, McLaren (Collision Damage)
R Grosjean, Lotus (Collision Damage)
D Ricciardo, Toro Rosso (Collision)
J Bianchi, Marussia (Spun Off)
P Maldonado, Williams (Collision)
F Massa, Ferrari (Suspension)
C Pic, Marussia (Gearbox)