The relationship between the Australian and Red Bull has been strained since
the 2010 season during which Webber regularly accused the team of favouring
his German team-mate Sebastian
Vettel.
His famous remark “not bad for a No 2 driver” after winning the British Grand
Prix that year summed up the bad blood.
At the end of that season, Webber wrote a book, in which he revealed that he
had driven the last four races of the season with a broken shoulder after a
mountain bike accident. Red Bull had no idea.
While both Webber and the team constantly played it down, that breakdown in
trust continued to surface from time to time, most notably in Malaysia this
year when Vettel defied team orders to pass Webber and win the race.
Asked why he had given the team such little notice, Webber replied that he had
“informed” Horner beforehand, but noted, perhaps tellingly, that it was all
he was contractually obliged to do.
“Obviously, I will talk to the factory at some stage,” he said. “They’ve been
superb for me on the floor there, but Porsche were very keen to make the
announcement. It was about Porsche and Mark Webber today.”
It will be interesting to see what effect, if any, his announcement has on Red
Bull’s championship. Speculation over his replacement will undoubtedly step
up a notch. Horner has already admitted that Lotus’ Kimi Raikkonen is a
possible candidate, as well as the two Toro
Rosso drivers, Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne.
Webber will surely hope to add to his nine race wins before hanging up his F1
race boots. But, even if he fails to do so, he will always be remembered
fondly by the Formula One community; a straight-talking, down-to-earth
Aussie, an Anglophile, one of the very few drivers to settle – and pay taxes
– in the UK.
He even owned a gastropub near his home in Buckinghamshire with his partner,
Ann Neal.
As a driver, Webber was extremely good, if not great. Ultimately, it was his
misfortune, once he had got himself into a decent car after spells with
Minardi, Jaguar and Williams, to be paired with Vettel.
Asked what he would miss most about Formula One, he came up with a typically
quotable response.
“The drug on the grid when the guys walk away from the car,” he said. “That’s
the best legal drug you can get.”
The sport will miss him.