Mark Webber

Mark Alan Webber (born 27 August 1976) is an Australian former racing driver, broadcaster, and driver manager who competed in Formula One from to . Webber won nine Formula One Grands Prix across twelve seasons. In endurance racing, Webber won the FIA World Endurance Championship in with Porsche.

Webber began karting at age twelve or thirteen and achieved early success, winning regional championships before progressing to car racing in the Australian Formula Ford Championship and the British Formula 3 Championship. He competed for two years opposite Bernd Schneider in the FIA GT Championship with the AMG Mercedes team, finishing runner-up in the 1998 season with five wins in ten races before finishing second in the 2001 International Formula 3000 Championship driving for Super Nova Racing. Webber made his F1 debut with the Minardi team in the 2002 season and finished fifth in his first race, the . He moved to the Jaguar squad for the and 2004 championships. For the 2005 season, he was granted an early release from his contract with Jaguar and joined the Williams team, securing his first podium finish at the . Webber remained at Williams until , driving for the Red Bull team for the rest of his F1 career. He won nine F1 , thirteen pole positions and finished third in the World Drivers' Championship in the , and 2013 seasons.

Webber left Formula One after 2013 and moved to the World Endurance Championship, sharing a Porsche 919 Hybrid with Bernhard and Hartley in the fully-professional Le Mans Prototype 1 class from the 2014 to 2016 seasons. The trio won eight races in the final two seasons and the 2015 World Endurance Drivers' Championship. He retired from motor sport in 2016, becoming a television pundit for Britain's Channel 4 and Australia's Network 10 and a driver manager. Webber received the Australian Sports Medal in 2000 and was appointed Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in the 2017 Australia Day Honours. Webber is an inductee of both the Australian Motor Sport Hall of Fame and the FIA Hall of Fame.

Early and personal life

On 27 August 1976, Webber was born to middle-class parents, motorcycle dealer and petrol station owner Alan Webber and his wife Diane, in the small New South Wales town of Queanbeyan located in the Tablelands, on the Queanbeyan River banks, near Canberra. Webber also worked as an apprentice plumber and woodcutter. Webber was not encouraged to seriously take up motorcycling by his father, because he sponsored some local children who were injured in motorbike accidents. At about twelve or thirteen, he switched to karting, buying a go-kart from a school friend's father. He developed himself at a local indoor go-kart centre near his home. Webber received a second-hand worn out go-kart from his father in 1990 and drove it about once a month at the Canberra Go-Kart Club and in meetings in and around Canberra. Andy Lawson, owner of Queanbeyan Kart Centre, built karts around Webber's frame and Webber's father leased his petrol station and worked long hours at a car dealer to fund his son's karting activities. Webber opted for karting, and the 1993 NSW Junior National Heavy Championship in a Lawson kart with a larger, more powerful engine.

In 1994, Webber made his car racing debut, competing in the eight-round Australian Formula Ford Championship featuring non-aerodynamically dependent open-wheel racing vehicles fitted with treaded tyres. He drove Craig Lowndes' championship-winning 1993 RF93 Van Diemen FF1600 car that his father purchased. Webber achieved a season-high third at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit for 14th in the Drivers' Championship with 30 points and second in the Rookie of the Year standings.

Webber entered the 1995 Australian Formula Ford Championship with Yellow Pages Racing driving a 1995 Van Diemen car, finishing fourth overall with three victories, three pole positions and 158 points in a high-quality field. Webber finished second at both Mallala Motor Sport Park rounds of the 1995 Australian Drivers' Championship driving a Birrana Racing Reynard 90D-Holden car for seventh in the Drivers' Championship with 32 points. In October 1995, he moved to the London suburb of Hainault, The result impressed team owner Ralph Firman Sr. enough to sign Webber to Van Diemen for both the 1996 European Formula Ford Championship and the 1996 British Formula Ford Championship, finishing third and second overall, respectively. Webber was ADR's lead driver complemented by two funded non-competitive teammates, he won the Brands Hatch Grand Prix event and came fourth overall with 131 points. Webber was voted Rookie of the Year as 1997's highest-placed rookie. His funding almost dried up mid-season until motor racing journalist Peter Windsor suggested Webber solicit funding from rugby union player and family friend David Campese to complete the year and stop Webber ending his international career early. (The money lent to Webber by Campese was repaid by the former.) Webber's season was put on a race-by-race basis and he received offers from Renault and Jackie Stewart. He also finished third in the Masters of Formula 3 and fourth in the Macau Grand Prix for ADR. Webber was informed by Red Bull that he and Vettel could race each other "for the foreseeable future" even when trying to reduce Button's points lead. He moved to second overall after finishing third in Hungary but fell to fourth due to driver, team and reliability errors in the next four races. At the season's penultimate round, the , Webber took his second career victory and held off Button to finish second at the season's final race in Abu Dhabi for fourth overall and 69.5 points.

2010–2013

Webber and Red Bull negotiated a contract extension to the championship to reward his performance in 2009. His RB6 car was designed to channel engine exhaust gases through a bodywork slot to the diffuser's central area for more downforce and cornering speed. A knee injury sustained while biking forced Webber to delay his preparation because a surgeon conducted a full knee incision. Inactivity during surgery increased Webber's weight to ; a strict diet kept his weight at . Upon his return to racing, he led the Drivers' Championship at various points during the season, achieving four Grand Prix victories and three pole positions. An accident with Rosberg at the and a second-place finish at the following put Webber eight points behind Alonso and seven ahead of Vettel entering the season-ending . Webber needed to win the race and for Alonso to place third or lower to secure the championship. He was eighth in the race, which Vettel won and Alonso came seventh. Webber was third overall with 242 points. After the season, Webber was angry with Red Bull's management, thinking they devalued his achievements that year. He collided with Vettel in a duel for the lead at the , which cooled his relationship with Marko who blamed Webber for the accident and favoured Vettel, something Webber felt again after Vettel received a new front wing intended for Webber at the .

Webber signed a Red Bull contract extension for the season before the , having agreed with the team to sign one-year contracts late in his career for ability and quality assessment. Webber's mental state worsened because he was ready to retire after a title win to stop all negativity related to his racing career. His RB7 car equipped with the kinetic energy recovery system (KERS) and drag reduction system devices and an exhaust-blown diffuser produced lots of rear grip. Webber was hindered by intermittent KERS failures that Red Bull rectified and he was frustrated with the quickly degrading Pirelli tyres losing their performance when a driver was in the aerodynamic turbulence of another car. He made slower starts due to the car's ballast distribution compromised by the KERS' additional weight exacerbated by him weighing more than Vettel. (Other factors included the moving of Red Bull's engineer who headed their starts performance group, a change in car clutch and a modified starting procedure.) All three issues were corrected in the season's second half.

Dietrich Mateschitz, Red Bull's owner, directed the team to allow both Webber and Vettel to race each other. Webber came no lower than fifth in the first four races, finishing third and second in China and Turkey. He finished the fourth from pole position. Webber took consecutive pole positions at the British and German Grands Prix and seven podiums from eleven top-tens in the next 13 events. He won the season-ending to take third overall from Alonso with a career-high 258 points. Webber initially struggled with the new Pirelli tyres, producing a greater amount of lateral load than his teammate Vettel and was more aggressive accelerating. His qualifying and race performances improved once he became better acquainted with the tyres. Webber made fewer pit stops by copying strategies used by other drivers after previously stopping more often from racing competitively. Webber's decision to re-sign was made more difficult in mid-2011 because of his poor qualifying performance on Pirelli tyres but noted the potential of Newey's car designs. The RB8 car was not as dominant as its two predecessors; He rejected an offer from Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali to partner Alonso and replace Felipe Massa for a year with a second optional, feeling switching teams would be inappropriate. He briefly lightened his training over the pre-season period when a titanium rod in his right leg was removed in December 2012. After restarting training that month, Webber decided to retire from F1 after 2013 because he wanted to spend more time with his family, demotivation with F1 since drivers could not criticise Pirelli's tyres for fear of possibly upsetting others and the politics when large sums of money were involved. Webber was assigned Simon Rennie as his race engineer when his previous engineer, Ciaron Pilbeam, became the Lotus team's chief race engineer.

Webber's RB9 car initially struggled possibly due to its aerodynamic profile on the new softer Pirelli compounds but performed better when the 2012 compounds were re-introduced mid-season. At the , the season's second round, Webber was overtaken by Vettel in the closing laps to win the race after Vettel ignored the team order "Multi-Map 21", which instructed him to finish behind Webber. Tension between both drivers rose as a result and a remark by Webber about Vettel making an independent decision to disobey team orders meant Vettel lost Webber's respect as a person. After that, Webber was aware that the rest of the season would be onerous and tension between him and Vettel would stress Red Bull. He took eight podium finishes, finishing second four more times at the , the , the from pole position and the season-ending . Webber won no races in 2013 and he concluded his final F1 season in third overall with 199 points. Webber was advised on modern sports car racing by Bernhard and in turn acquainted Bernhard and Hartley with the circuits he drove in F1. He was mindful on developing the car for his co-drivers and not for himself but directed Porsche to concentrate on research and development projects that optimised performance in the shortest possible time. Webber also helped the team reduce the amount of pit stop time.

The 2014 season began with Webber qualifying sixth and finishing third at the season-opening 6 Hours of Silverstone. Hybrid technical issues at the following 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps left Webber and his co-drivers 23rd overall. The next four races saw him finish no lower than sixth, placing third at both the 6 Hours of Fuji and the 6 Hours of Bahrain. At the season-ending 6 Hours of São Paulo, his team qualified on pole position; He was ninth in the World Endurance Drivers' Championship (WEDC) with 64.5 points. Webber and Hartley qualified the car on pole position for the season-opening 6 Hours of Silverstone but Webber had to retire it with drivetrain failure. He was on pole position at the following 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps and finished third after Hartley incurred a stop-and-go penalty for rejoining the track via an escape road. He qualified and finished second at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. before claiming four consecutive victories to enter the season-ending 6 Hours of Bahrain leading Audi's Marcel Fässler, André Lotterer and Benoît Tréluyer by 12 points. Webber and his teammates needed to finish third to win the WEDC. They qualified on pole position and overcame mechanical problems to finish fifth and claim the title with 166 points, five ahead of Fässler, Lotterer and Tréluyer.

Webber again remained at Porsche alongside Bernhard and Hartley in the renumbered No. 1 entry for the 2016 championship. The crew retired from the season-opening 6 Hours of Silverstone following a collision between Hartley and a slower Porsche GT car. At the following 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, two tyre punctures and a front axle gearbox problem left him 27th overall. Webber began from second at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and finished 13th overall due to a water pump failure that needed fixing when Webber was driving. The rest of the season saw the crew win four of the next six races and qualify on pole position once for fourth in the WEDC with 134.5 points. He kept the news secret until going to Japan, citing Porsche's dwindling desire to commit fully to its LMP1 programme and the difficulty of doing "this job half-hearted" with regards of getting motivated to do test sessions and races as reasons.

Webber was due to compete in the American-based short track oval racing series Superstar Racing Experience in 2021; travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic meant Webber was ultimately unable to do this.

Driving style In describing Webber's driving style, journalist Mark Hughes stated: "The thing he does arguably better than anyone else, is extract every ounce of potential from the car through fast, aerodynamically-loaded corners" since extra lap time could be located in slower turns because the car remains in them for longer. He was able to feel the braking grip of his tyres and could correctly modulate throttle power as grip levels reduced under braking to slow the vehicle down. Entering a braking zone, Webber achieved more retardation rate in a downforce-reliant car than other drivers and as the downforce decreased he was able to modulate pressure and sensitivity well to remain within the tyre's grip limit. His driving style, which was refined in downforce-heavy sports cars in the late 1990s, was not suited to a more gentle approach required for driving V8 F1 Pirelli-shod cars because of how he managed those brand of tyres that wore out faster than the Bridgestone compounds he was accustomed to.

Non-driving work

Webber is a brand ambassador of the luxury fashion house Hugo Boss, the car brand Porsche, the watch manufacturer Rolex, the synthetic engine oil brand Mobil 1, the airline carrier Qantas, and the spinal cord injury research charity Wings for Life. In July 2003, he helped to launch that year's Road Safety Handbook aiming to give road safety guides for residents of Milton Keynes. As a result of his endorsement money and salary, he was included in Australia's Top 50 Sports Earners and the BRW Young Rich lists by BRW magazine. From 2009 to 2013, Webber and Horner co-owned the MW Arden junior team that ran in the European-based GP3 Series. He launched the off-road sports clothing brand Aussie Grit for mountain riding and running in 2018, and fronted Porsche and Boss' clothing collections for 2019 and 2020. He organised it following his grandfather's death from cancer as well as his experiences of friends whose children had cancer. Webber held the challenge again from 2006 to 2008 but not in 2009 and 2010 due to economical problems. He again held the event with corporate and local government sponsorship from 2011 to 2013. Inspire Young People and Webber created the Mark Webber Youth Challenge in 2014 involving college student teams raising money for charity participating in physical activities. He was patron of the Amy Gillett Foundation promoting safer on-road relationships between cyclists and motorists, and of the Aylesbury College Trust. He supported the use of the AI-operated prostate cancer diagnosis device Maxwell Plus in Queanbeyan in November 2021 following a reduction in testing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Webber became an ambassador of the Amber Foundation youth homeless charity in March 2023.

Webber has written columns for Autosport, the BBC, He has provided expert analysis on F1 for the British television broadcaster Channel 4 since the season. Webber has done a similar role for Australia's Channel 10, covering the Australian Grand Prix and co-hosting the 2015 Clipsal 500 of the V8 Supercars Championship for the broadcaster. He was guest reporter for two rounds of the 2017 World Rally Championship on Red Bull TV. Since early 2020, Webber has mentored racing driver Oscar Piastri and represents his commercial interests through the management arm JAM Sports Management he founded with his wife, and corporate and sports CEO Jason Allen. He authored the book, Up Front – 2010, A Season To Remember, in 2010. Webber owned a public house, The Stag, in Mentmore. He joined documentary makers Noah Media Group as a producer and an investor in November 2021.

Assessment and honours

Webber is nicknamed "Aussie Grit" for "his determination in the face of adversity and his patriotism."

In October 2003, Webber was unanimously voted fourth director of the trade union Grand Prix Drivers' Association (GPDA). He was voted out of it in September 2005 since it felt there were too many directors in charge. Webber was voted back in the GPDA as a director in September 2006, resigning in March 2010. He won the BRDC Bruce McLaren Award in 1998, 2000, 2001, 2009, and 2010 as "the Commonwealth driver who has established the most meritorious performances in international motor racing." In October 2000, he received the Australian Sports Medal for placing second in the 1998 FIA GT Championship and participating in the IF3000 Championship; was voted "Rookie of the Year" by both readers of F1 Racing and Autosport magazines; named "F1 Newcomer of the Year" at the annual Grand Prix Party Awards; was named Autocar magazine's 2003 F1 Driver of the Year; won the Lorenzo Bandini Trophy in 2006; and the 2009 Innes Ireland Trophy for displaying "courage and sportsmanship" that Innes Ireland epitomised. the 2010 GQ Australia Sportsman of the Year; the 2011 DHL Fastest Lap Award for setting more fastest laps than any driver that year with seven; the 2013 Johnny Wakefield Trophy for recording the year's best lap on the Silverstone GP Circuit, and the Peter Brock Medal in 2017. He was appointed Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in the 2017 Australia Day Honours for "distinguished service to motor sport as a competitor and ambassador, and to the community through fundraising and patronage of a range of medical and youth support organisations." Webber was added to the Australian Motor Sport Hall of Fame and the FIA Hall of Fame in 2018 and 2019, respectively. In 2022, he was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame.

Racing record Career summary Season Series Team Races Wins Poles Podiums Points Position 1994 Australian Formula Ford Championship Mark Webber 16 0 0 ? 1 30 13th 1995 Australian Formula Ford Championship Yellow Pages Racing 16 3 3 ? ? 158 4th Australian Drivers' Championship Birrana Racing 2 0 0 0 2 32 8th Formula Ford Festival Van Diemen 1 0 0 0 1 N/A 3rd 1996 European Formula Ford Championship Van Diemen ? ? ? ? ? ? 3rd British Formula Ford Championship ? ? ? ? ? 113 2nd Formula Ford Festival 1 1 0 0 1 N/A 1st Australian Drivers' Championship Ralt Australia 2 1 0 0 1 20 10th 1997 British Formula 3 Championship Alan Docking Racing 16 1 3 1 5 127 4th Macau Grand Prix 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 4th Masters of Formula 3 1 0 0 0 1 N/A 3rd 1998 FIA GT Championship AMG Mercedes 10 5 0 0 8 69 2nd 24 Hours of Le Mans 1 0 1 0 0 N/A NC 1999 24 Hours of Le Mans AMG Mercedes 1 0 0 0 0 N/A DNS 2000 International Formula 3000 European Arrows 10 1 0 2 3 21 3rdFormula OneArrows F1 Team Test driver 2001 International Formula 3000 Super Nova Racing 12 3 2 3 4 39 2ndFormula One Mild Seven Benetton Renault Test driver 2002 Formula One KL Minardi Asiatech 17 0 0 0 0 2 16th 2003 Formula One Jaguar Racing F1 Team 16 0 0 0 0 17 10th 2004 Formula One Jaguar Racing F1 Team 18 0 0 0 0 7 13th 2005 Formula One BMW Williams F1 Team 19 0 0 0 1 36 10th 2006 Formula One Williams F1 Team 18 0 0 0 0 7 14th 2007 Formula One Red Bull Racing 17 0 0 0 1 10 12th 2008 Formula One Red Bull Racing 18 0 0 0 0 21 11th 2009 Formula One Red Bull Racing 17 2 1 3 8 69.5 4th 2010 Formula One Red Bull Racing 19 4 5 3 10 242 3rd 2011 Formula One Red Bull Racing 19 1 3 7 10 258 3rd 2012 Formula One Red Bull Racing 20 2 2 1 4 179 6th 2013 Formula One Infiniti Red Bull Racing 19 0 2 5 8 199 3rd 2014 FIA World Endurance Championship Porsche Team 8 0 1 1 3 64.5 9th 24 Hours of Le Mans 1 0 0 0 0 N/A NC 2015 FIA World Endurance Championship Porsche Team 8 4 5 0 6 166 1st 24 Hours of Le Mans 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 2nd 2016 FIA World Endurance Championship Porsche Team 9 4 2 0 6 134.5 4th 24 Hours of Le Mans 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 13th

Complete British Formula 3 results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Team Engine Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 DC Pts 1997 Alan Docking Racing Mugen A DON SIL THR BRH SIL CRO OUL SIL PEM PEM DON SNE SNE SPA SIL THR 4th 131

Complete FIA GT Championship results

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results Year Team Co-drivers Car Class AMG-Mercedes Klaus Ludwig Bernd Schneider Mercedes-Benz CLK-LM GT1 19 DNF DNF AMG-Mercedes Jean-Marc Gounon Marcel Tiemann Mercedes-Benz CLR LMGTP 0 Porsche Team Timo Bernhard Brendon Hartley Porsche 919 Hybrid LMP1-H 346 Porsche Team Timo Bernhard Brendon Hartley Porsche 919 Hybrid LMP1 394 2nd 2nd Porsche Team Timo Bernhard Brendon Hartley Porsche 919 Hybrid LMP1 346 13th 5th

Complete International Formula 3000 results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap; small number denotes finishing position)

Complete Formula One results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap; small number denotes finishing position) Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Points KL Minardi Asiatech Minardi PS02 Asiatech AT02 3.0 V10 AUS MAL BRA SMRESP AUT MON CAN EUR GBR FRA GER HUN BEL ITA USA JPN 16th 2 Jaguar Racing F1 Team Jaguar R4 Cosworth CR-5 3.0 V10 AUS MAL BRA SMR ESP AUT MON CAN EUR FRA GBR GER HUN ITA USA JPN 10th 17 Jaguar Racing F1 Team Jaguar R5 Cosworth CR-6 3.0 V10 AUS MAL BHR SMR ESP MON EUR CAN USA FRA GBR GER HUN BEL ITA CHN JPN 13th 7 Jaguar R5B BRA BMW Williams F1 Team Williams FW27 BMW P84/5 3.0 V10 AUS MAL BHR SMR ESP MON EUR CAN USA FRA GBR GER HUN TUR ITA BEL BRA JPN CHN 10th 36 Williams F1 Team Williams FW28 Cosworth CA2006 2.4 V8 BHR MAL AUS SMR EUR ESP MON GBR CAN USA FRA GER HUN TUR ITA CHN JPN BRA 14th 7 Red Bull Racing Red Bull RB3 Renault RS27 2.4 V8 AUS MAL BHR ESP MON CAN USA FRA GBR EUR HUN TUR ITA BEL JPN CHN BRA 12th 10 Red Bull Racing Red Bull RB4 Renault RS27 2.4 V8 AUS MAL BHR ESP TUR MON CAN FRA GBR GER HUN EUR BEL ITA SIN JPN CHN BRA 11th 21 Red Bull Racing Red Bull RB5 Renault RS27 2.4 V8 AUS MAL CHN BHR ESP MON TUR GBR GER HUN EUR BEL ITA SIN JPN BRA ABU 4th 69.5 Red Bull Racing Red Bull RB6 Renault RS27-2010 2.4 V8 BHR AUS MAL CHN ESP MON TUR CAN EUR GBR GER HUN BEL ITA SIN JPN KOR BRA ABU 3rd 242 Red Bull Racing Red Bull RB7 Renault RS27-2011 2.4 V8 AUS MAL CHN TUR ESP MON CAN EUR GBR GER HUN BEL ITA SIN JPN KOR IND ABU BRA 3rd 258 Red Bull Racing Red Bull RB8 Renault RS27-2012 2.4 V8 AUS MAL CHN BHR ESP MON CAN EUR GBR GER HUN BEL ITA SIN JPN KOR IND ABU USA BRA 6th 179 Infiniti Red Bull Racing Red Bull RB9 Renault RS27-2013 2.4 V8 AUS MAL CHN BHR ESP MON CAN GBR GER HUN BEL ITA SIN KOR JPN IND ABU USA BRA 3rd 199 Half points awarded as less than 75% of race distance was completed by the winner. Did not finish, but was classified as he had completed more than 90% of the race distance.

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results Year Entrant Class Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Points 2014 Porsche Team LMP1 Porsche 919 Hybrid Porsche 2.0 L Turbo V4 (Hybrid) SIL SPA LMS COA FUJ SHA BHR SÃO 9th 64.5 2015 Porsche Team LMP1 Porsche 919 Hybrid Porsche 2.0 L Turbo V4 (Hybrid) SIL SPA LMS NÜR COA FUJ SHA BHR 1st 166 2016 Porsche Team LMP1 Porsche 919 Hybrid Porsche 2.0 L Turbo V4 (Hybrid) SIL SPA LMS NÜR MEX COA FUJ SHA BHR 4th 134.5