Motor Sport:Mark Webber today declared himself an inconvenience to his Red Bull team, who he feels are emotionally behind team-mate Sebastian Vettel. Despite still being firmly in contention for the world championship, Webber delivered his latest damning appraisal of life behind the scenes at a team where battle lines remain drawn.
In many respects, Webber’s media gathering ahead of this weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix was often more about what he did not say than his actual comments. At times the Australian wore an air of resignation, sat slumped in his chair, shrugged his shoulders and there were a number of lengthy silences before he answered questions.
For a man only 11 points behind championship leader Fernando Alonso with two races remaining, Webber appeared more akin to someone who had just lost the title rather than being firmly in the hunt.
Asked whether it was a fair assessment that he felt the team was still not fully behind him, there was a long pause before Webber said: “Technically everything’s been very, very good.”
Pushed as to the personal, emotional side of the coin, Webber made his feelings clear, adding: “It’s obvious isn’t it? I’m an old stager and when young, new chargers come onto the block that’s where the emotion is. That’s the way it is, which is absolutely fine.
“I’ve had a great opportunity and a great car to go and do some great things this year, and I have done that. I have a chance of winning the championship, I’ve won four races, I’ve had nine podiums, it’s been a sensational year for me.
“I can still put the icing on the cake and I’d love to be able to do that. If we don’t, the sun still comes up on Monday morning. But I’ve favourites in life. I’ve got people I like to be with. That’s how it is. It’s human nature.”
Webber was referring to Vettel’s close association with team owner Dietrich Mateschitz and his right-hand man Helmut Marko, who on occasion this year has not hidden his sentiment towards the young German.
Asked if he was the people’s favourite, Webber added: “I think I wasn’t supposed to be in the hunt at all, so it’s been maybe quite inconvenient, but I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.”
One of the major talking points is whether Vettel, who is 25 points down on Alonso, should now play the supporting role. Webber was asked if he would support Vettel if the situation was reversed.
His reply, after yet another lengthy pause and a deep sigh, further underlined the division which exists between them.
“It’s a tough question and a tough situation to know how you would do things,” Webber added. “There’s a lot of really good people at this team and there’s no getting away from the fact we would love to win some championships this year.
“We’re at different parts of our career as well, so it’s not as easy as some might imagine. I’d need to think a lot further about that. For different reasons here and there, Seb’s never led the championship this year and I have.
“Whatever the best way we go about trying to win the championship, we’ll see on the Monday after Abu Dhabi if it was the right way.”
Asked to respond to Webber’s comments, team principal Christian Horner said: “It’s not been inconvenient at all. He’s had tremendous support from the whole team, not just this year, but in all the years he’s been with Red Bull.
“He’s probably referring to the support of Helmut to Sebastian, but that doesn’t influence the way the team operates or the way it supports its drivers. We’ve given both drivers a great car and we’ve given Mark the tools to get the job done.”