Mark Webber

I'm a little puzzled as to why Webber doesn't have a page in the teams and drivers section, as Webber is a pivotal figure in the story upfront. There are questions that need to be asked. Why can Vettel win, and Webber struggle to get on the podium fighting Ferraris and McLarens? Why is the man that was noted as a good qualifier unable to get near Vettel? Did the leg break in late 2008 do him serious performance damage? and What should Webber do in the near future?

Mark Webber. Over to you...
 
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Brogan......Runner up to Schumacher once and four third placings in the championship is why I said he can't be considered one of the greats but makes him far more than a journeyman. There is no shame in a career that produces those results especially considering he played backup to Mika for much of his career, despite McLaren saying they don't favor a driver.
 
Mephistopheles......We in NZ with our history in the sport would dearly love to have a Kiwi driver to follow regardless of how successful he may be. I find it sad that the British have many drivers in F1, past and present, and all they do is knock them with the exception of Hamilton, though even Lewis takes a hammering at times. Hopefully Mitch Evens will get his chance in F1 after a year or two in GP2. That would be fabulous for NZ motorsport. :)
 
Josh Hill has done a fair bit of racing on your side of the world and I believe he is highly rated down there (If down is the correct term who knows which way up the universe is.:D )
 
Kewee - I take drivers on their merits regardless of nationality; I don't knock Coulthard because he's British. In fact, I very much like his attitude to the things he knows he couldn't have won.

As for Webber, he's a choker. His bad starts always seem to come from the front, his title tilt in 2009 and 2012 we're over when he got a sniff and his 2010 chance was blown by a crash in Korea and a poor qualifying in Abu Dhabi from a really good position. And, as mnmracer has shown, Webber does disproportionatly well at a very small selection of circuits, he's too spooked by not being at a favourite track.
 
teabagyokel said:
Kewee - I take drivers on their merits regardless of nationality.
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Pleased to hear it, many don't I'm sure you'd agree. Webber may make mistakes at critical times but I can assure you he's not a choker. Marko has a talent for playing physiological games with Webber at critical times of the season which is incredibly unfair. Some would say Webber should rise above that. Not easy considering Marko's seniority and position in the team. We could go round in circles on this forever. Fair enough to say we agree to disagree. :) Cheers
 
Mephistopheles.....Thanks for that. The current series is running at the moment. Its at Hampton Downs this weekend. Unfortunately I have to travel to see it and I've just returned to New Plymouth from a business trip to Auckland. I do the return trip to Auckland every month, a great road to drive if you like rugged country and gorges. I always try to get my trips to coincide with a race meeting at this time of the year but sometimes it's not possible, though I never miss the oval track internationals when the Americans are here over Christmas/New year. A very different type of racing. Explosive, aggressive and immediate. We have a few English friends that come out here and wouldn't miss it. These are guys that love F1. Their first experience of International Midget racing leaves them speechless. :)
 
I don't see the argument about being a 2nd driver and therefore being unable to challenge. The great drivers aren't number twos because they're great in the first place. Webber is in the 2nd rate group for a reason. The fact that Sky give odds of 5/4 on Vettel winning the title this year while Webber is on 16/1 really shows how in general people rate Webber's chances (, not a great measurement I know, but it makes my point aptly).
 
Mephistopheles....Sorry Mephistopeles, of course I'm aware Josh Hill was racing out here in the Toyota Series. I must have been in la la land to not pick up who you were talking about. He did run well but in saying that it's a tough series. Very competitive. We get some very good up and coming drivers from all over the world including South America, Italy, France as well as the UK. Mitch Evens has entered this year also before he heads off for GP2. Sorry for appearing so slow, I'll try to stay with the program. LOL
 
Being second driver only comes into play in the race (or post-qualifying if you're Ferrari). In qualifying, you just step on that gas pedal as hard as you can. Webber is one of the best qualifiers on the grid, but considering his quali stats against Vettel are 54:21 in favor of ze German, that pretty much ends the argument on who should be given first choice when there is a need to pick.

I rate Webber on the level of Button though. I'm fully convinced that Webber too could have won the '09 championship in the Brawn; Jenson's year then is actually pretty similair to what Webber often does. Button is probably slightly better on average race pace (ultimate race pace they are pretty equal), but Webber much faster in qualifying. He just happens to be unlucky to be teamed with Vettel.
 
Bushi......Yes I do. I also recognize to win at Monaco you have to remain faultless for 78 laps and survive the pitstops to win. He's done so twice. You obviously think thats easy.
 
mnmracer......I've been singing Webbers praise's with a few postings on this thread but I'm not so sure I can rate him above or equal to Button. I know many refer to Buttons car advantage in his championship year but that really only helped him in the first half of the season. He folded under pressure during the second half of the season but gathered himself in Brazil. His drive there from 14th on the grid to 5th was what was needed to capture the title and he drove it like a true champion. Probably a better measure of his talent is how he measured up against Hamilton in his first year at McLaren. What lacked in outright speed he more than made up for in mental toughness which showed in their compared results at the end of the season. He was also only 2 points away from Lewis at the end of 2012. They both had their share of bad luck and misfortune but on average Button looked pretty good against Hamilton. I'm not sure Webber could have achieved the same.
 
Kewee

Pitstop, there was only one. i don't think he would have won if there where more than just that one. 15 guys that where behind him also did the track faultless, if not they could do it faster. He won twice, but what was the difference between the guys behind him every time? And what's hard about it when nobody can pass you? You can drive 5sec. a lap slower than the entire field and still win.
 
Kewee
Back at ya.

Fact of the matter is, if you are in front in Monaco and don't make mistakes you win.
Monaco is regarded as the most boring GP on the calender, by most people.
Guess i found somebody who sits on the edge of his seat when this borefest is on.
 

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