We are talking at Webber’s home in Aston Clinton, Buckinghamshire, just before
his departure for the final two races of his F1 career.
Outside it is a cold and wet November day but inside the restored home a log
fire is burning. There is no sign of Webber’s two dogs, Simba and Shadow
(“stood down from interviews since they bit Eddie Jordan’s hand”, Neal
remarks) but there is ample evidence elsewhere of the rural idyll which
Webber and Neal have built in the English countryside, a million miles from
his childhood in Australia.
At one point Webber’s PA, Kerry, comes in with some eggs which the chickens
have laid. It all seems a far cry from the blood and thunder of that season
in 2010. “Yep, that season was f—— intense mate,” Webber says with a
nod. “Only those closest to me know what went into it. But it was good to go
through that. To be honest I can’t believe I did what I did at the time.
Looking back I’m pretty proud of myself, the way it was kicking off and how
I handled myself.”
Webber is careful not to reveal too much (“Not from me,” he says firmly when
asked if the truth will all spill out once the season is over) but there is
enough in what he does say to make clear the depth of his frustration at how
the past few years have panned out, the sadness tinged with regret at
relationships soured. His one with Red Bull team principal Christian Horner,
for instance, which goes back years and even led to them starting a race
team, MW Arden, together.
“To manage the whole scenario hasn’t been super easy for the team,” Webber
concedes. “We were in uncharted waters in 2010. ‘F—, we’re going for our
first title. Holy s—, how do we do it? Let them both go at it maybe? Oh
no, maybe not…’
“Look, we’ve been through some massive highs and some tough lows. So yes, the
relationship has been strained. But ultimately I still feel – and I may be
biased to myself – that I did what I could. I don’t see what I could have
done much differently. I gave it my best shot.”
Webber is adamant that he and Horner will be able to share a beer together
when the dust has settled but he sounds less sure about Vettel, whose
decision to defy team orders and snatch victory from him in Malaysia this
year reopened old wounds. “There are blinkers and there are blinkers,”
Webber says. “I saw Michael [Schumacher]’s blinkers, too, and I don’t think
Seb’s are as bad as that. I think in time, a stiff glass of red wine one day
down the line, it will probably be OK with us. But it’s hard at the moment.”
For all the frustration, Webber is keenly aware of how fortunate he has been.
He smiles at the memories of his early days, arriving in England in 1995 and
working for £43 a day at Brands Hatch, “hassling the s—” out of potential
sponsors, the famous £50,000 injection of cash from Australian rugby great
David Campese, an old team-mate of his dad’s, that kept him going.
“Oh, it has been a wicked trip mate,” Webber says. “When I left Australia I
never, ever ever thought I would end up in Formula One with 215 races and 40
or so podiums under my belt. Coming from where I come from there is a very
low strike rate for us guys.
“You think back to the start and you are on that rat wheel and you are working
your nuts off. You can’t ever forget that. Driving in your 1.1-litre B-reg
Fiesta from Norfolk to Brands Hatch to work for £43 a day. If you were lucky
you might get to stay at Anne’s mum’s house and that would save you petrol.
I have been very lucky. OK, I’ve had a bit of a rough time of late but
overall I was dealt a good hand.”
Formula One was dealt a good hand getting a driver like Webber, too, 100 per
cent committed and prepared to speak his mind on anything from the situation
in Bahrain to the prevalence of pay drivers. At 37, though, he is confident
that he is leaving at the right time, the move to Pirelli’s fast-degrading
tyres doing him and others of his ilk, such as Lewis Hamilton, no favours.
“The young guys coming through don’t know any different yet but it has been
getting harder for me on Sundays,” he admits. “High-speed corners are one of
my strengths but that’s where you kill the tyres. It’s so frustrating. The
guys will come on the radio and say ’Don’t push. Slow it down.’ You just
feel like there’s a lot of stuff falling through the net in terms of what
you could bring.
“Vettel is seriously handy, don’t get me wrong, but guys like Lewis have been
hurt. He just wants to race every lap. And this, at the moment, is just not
working for him. But I don’t want to leave the sport bitching about how it
was so much better in the old days. The guys who are successful deserve
their success because they’ve worked it out.”
In any case, Webber is keen to stress that this is not it for him as a racer.
“People are talking about it like I’m retiring. Le Mans is not an old
people’s home you know. But yeah, I’m looking forward to having more time to
myself. I’ll probably get to three or four Formula One races. I’ll have my
helicopter, helping youngsters such as Mitch [Evans], my charity fitness
challenge in Tasmania, more time with my dogs. It’s going to be great.”
Webber may not be up for a big send-off but there is no chance he will be
allowed to slip away quietly, through the back door to Sao Paulo airport on
Sunday night. Selected paddock members have been issued with black T-shirts
bearing the legend ‘Made my Mark’. He certainly did that. Webber may have
fallen just short in 2010 but his Aussie grit will not be forgotten in a
hurry.
Career highs …
German GP 2009
Webber’s first win, and his first pole, came at the Nürburgring in his 130th
race. No F1 driver has ever waited so long for his first victory. Sebastian
Vettel completed a Red Bull one-two. “The first win was very emotional,”
Webber says. “It was important to me that it wasn’t a fluke, and it
wasn’t.”
Monaco GP 2010
The first of two wins at F1’s blue riband event. Webber memorably celebrated
by performing a backwards somersault into the swimming pool on Red Bull’s
floating paddock home, before leaping into the harbour.
British GP 2010
Webber’s first win at Silverstone came in hugely controversial fashion, after
Red Bull had given his front wing to Vettel. “Not bad for a No 2 driver,”
Webber remarked icily to his team as he crossed the line.
And lows …
Turkish GP 2010
The infamous collision between Vettel and Webber in Istanbul, which sent Red
Bull’s comms team into a PR meltdown, marked the first time the simmering
tension between the two team-mates had boiled over in public.
European GP 2010
Webber was fortunate to escape with minor injuries after a spectacular
high-speed crash in Valencia, which saw his car somersault after touching
Heikki Kovalainen’s.
Malaysian GP 2013
Vettel’s decision to defy team orders and snatch victory from Webber in Kuala
Lumpur earlier this year further soured their relationship and served to
increase the palpable tension between the Australian and the Red Bull team.