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Just heard Mark Webber has signed a deal with Porsche to bring to a close his 12 year career in F1. I guess his position was untenable in RBR given what happened earlier in the year and that Sebastien is the Golden boy over there.
I, for one, wish Webber luck in his new venture. I've always appreciated his straight talking and honesty. There aren't many drivers out there nowadays who are willing to say it like it is.
Webber confirms F1 exit to join Porsche WEC team - F1 Fanatic
The rumours were true then, this cropped up after one of the GPs early this season and was swiftly denied (no surprise there).
So who will replace him? Raikkonen? Or one of the Toro Rosso drivers?
Looking forward to watching more of the WEC next year, I hope it brings him and Porsche great success :up:
I wish Webber the very best of luck. It's just too bad that Jaguar doesn't have a sports car team now, so he could (re)join that marque.
Raikkonen to Red Bull? Hmm... Karma might be getting set to pay young Sebastian a visit. :D
It's a great shame that Hamilton didn't hang on at McLaren for another year and move to RBR then. Then we'd see how good Seb really is.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jag_Warrior
That's imho the most probable option. Be careful however what you wish for - you might get it. We could end up with a Hamilton/Schumacher situation. Many thought that Hamilton would mop the floor with Rosberg. But instead Lewis just proves that Schumacher wasn't as far from his former self as many thought. Yes, Kimi could end the Vettel domination, but he could also prove that more of RB's success is down to Vettel's driving than some of his detractors are willing to concede.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jag_Warrior
It would be a quite interesting move though. Not too many world champions of the past have accepted another WDC as a team mate. For Vettel it is a no-win scenario. If Kimi beats him, all his detractors will have a field day. If he beats Kimi, they will simply change over to the 'golden boy' story line.
Great to see Webbo at Porsche :D They need experienced drivers and he is one. Will never forget his nasty flip in the Merc. That was properly scary.
Raikkonen should provide a pretty good yardstick if it's him who goes to Red Bull.Quote:
Originally Posted by The Black Knight
He's got to be the most likely candidate hasn't he. He's out of contract next year and would fit the sponsor's corporate image. I don't see either of the Torro Rosso drivers being ready to win a championship yet.
Why so little respect for STR drivers? STR is a low budget team and designs its own chassis. It's expected that they can't challenge for high positions. Getting in points is a prize big enough for the team. I'd understand the doubts about STR drivers is they were making obvious errors or mistakes on the race track, like say Grosjean.
Raikkonen is the most deserving driver of the RBR seat right now, but the big question is about whether RBR is willing to have two drivers who can simultaneously challenge for WDC. Signing a contract for just one year could be smart just in case if things go sour.
Oh no. Who will do Vettel's setup's now???? :) JOKING PEOPLE!!!
Seriously, Mark Webber has achieved a lot and is a great driver. I hope that Ricciardo gets his seat.
It's a fair point. Even if they're not championship contenders they could make solid number 2 drivers, which Red Bull might prefer after all the conflict in the team over recent years.Quote:
Originally Posted by zako85
No doubt their motivation will be sky-high now that a seat in the top team is open, it'll be interesting to see what they do over the next few races.
Well, it is no secret that money isn't exactly flowing at LotuswasRenault....... It'd be Kimi's only real option of;Quote:
Originally Posted by Jag_Warrior
a good seat, and
employment security.
If my beer-addled brain hasn't gone completely to waste yet, he also has ties with Red Bull already. Wasn't his rallye car running in Red Bull colours? It's also no secret that Kimi and Seb get along very well, which would be a huge change for RB ;) The only question would be the fact to have two champions in the team. Having two contenders in the team didn't work well in the past.Quote:
Originally Posted by SGWilko
"Not bad for a number two driver."
I'll miss Mark.
well saidQuote:
Originally Posted by Jag_Warrior
Webber did himself proud and came close to a WDC ( like rubens) late in his career. If he stayed on track in Korea we would be talking about 7 champs on the grid these past 2 years. I wish him the best at porsche.
Very interesting to see what RBR does. This is certainly going to have a ripple effect up and down the grid in terms of driver seat movements
indeed The Black Knight...Indeed!Quote:
Originally Posted by The Black Knight
Kind of.Quote:
Originally Posted by zako85
Kudos to Webber for choosing his own career path rather than being forced out of F1.
I'd like to see one of the TR drivers given a chance. It's about time Red Bull's junior programme bore fruit again and I'm not sure going into Seb's team would be a good idea for Kimi.
I wouln't say that's quite accurate. I'd be interested to see exactly where Lewis ends up once he sorts his braking issues, we'll be able to judge better than but one thing is fore sure, Schumacher was still no slouch when he retired! :)Quote:
Originally Posted by dj_bytedisaster
Good Luck to Mark
I have always liked Mark and enjoyed watching him race in F1.
Cant wait also to see him and Porsche have a crack at |Le Man next season.
Mark decided to emulate his idol, Helmuth Marko, and try to win the Le Mans 24 Hours race in a Porsche! Who would have thought this?! :laugh:
Don't forget which team Vettel was driving for when he won his first race...Quote:
Originally Posted by zako85
Webber is leaving Formula 1 at just the right time in his career, not hanging on desperately like some have done in the past. Porsche has a great history in endurance racing and an experienced driver like him is just what they need to give Audi some proper competition.
P.S. The new LMP1 Porsche looks superb!
So he says it like it is, ok. Well this is what he said:Quote:
Originally Posted by The Black Knight
Red Bull driver Mark Webber says his decision to leave Formula 1 at the end of the season had nothing to do with the Malaysia team orders controversy.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/23085501
But never pass up a chance to spew some bigoted hatred for a driver despite all matter of logic, reason, and facts.
I thought some major money just came their way. Some Saudi outfit with big cash. Mansour something. Making big claims about winning the championship in the next year.Quote:
Originally Posted by SGWilko
If Raikkonen can really pour it on this year and the team really shows some signs, perhaps he won't move.
I think so too. Its going to be a real challenge but one that promises to be exciting to follow.Quote:
Originally Posted by Corvettian
Heard about this this morning, can't say I'm surprised. I bet he doesn't envy bieber s new team mate.
I also heard the rumour about Kimi going there. If Boullier has any brains, he will fight for him. Kimi is probably the best driver on the grid now and lotus simply can't afford to lose him.
After all, who on earth could replace him?
It's widely believed that the 2008 Toro Rosso cars were replicas of RedBull chassis and probably illegal. Of course, this will not diminish Vettel's accomplishment in his first full time year. We had beaten his teammate, who was a pretty good driver IMO, as well as the fine pilots driving the "A team" cars.Quote:
Originally Posted by Corvettian
Here's hoping MW can finish the year with another visit to the top step of the rostrum, to cap off a solid career with a great team. As mentioned above, had he managed to not lose it in Korea we may well have been farewelling a WDC, but coulda-shoulda-woulda...
I will be interested in the future speculation of who fills the vacant RBR seat, I hope its Daniel but in reality you could put any of the drivers good enough to race in F1 into a great car and you would have a contender IMO.
When a good Formula 1 driver leaves for another motor competition, it always good for the other motorsport as that often greatly increases interest in the other motorsport. It will definitely be fun to see Webber in WEC. He will make a good company to Heidfeld, Buemi, and Bruno Senna. It's win-win for both sports. It's nice to see Webber move on to WEC at the time when he still has a good potential instead of pulling a Trulli or Villeneuve who both seemed to hang on in F1 forever, way past their prime and driving mediocre cars in the back of field.
Quote:
Originally Posted by zako85
I'm sorry, the louts at your local pub do not constitute "wide belief".
Some Q&A about stuff and things.
Q&A: Webber on F1 and his Porsche future - Speedcafe
Quote:
Originally Posted by vhatever
It's all over the internet. Just look up STR2 on wikipedia and follow the references or google for "STR2 newey". It was a Newey designed chassis, possibly lagging the RBR chassis by a few months and tweaks. Vettel did great in 2008, but it wasn't a Minardi with RedBull sticker he was driving that year.
I think Mark leaves F1 with a huge amount of respect from his peers. One of the true good guys of the paddock who was never afraid to rock the boat a little to get his point across. Drivers like him are a dying breed with the modern corporate robot mentality being the easier option. He's achieved way more than many drivers do in an F1 career and is someone, despite the friction at times, Vettel has openly said he has immense respect for. Someone who has pushed Vettel into competing at the level he does today. A genuinely nice guy who I think will be missed in the sport.
I hope he finds success with Porsche and works in the happy atmosphere he deserves. :)
You kill me vhatever - priceless tripe as always.......Quote:
Originally Posted by vhatever
Quote:
Originally Posted by zako85
Why would I look up "STR2" when it was the STR3. You can't even get your chassis straight.
I don't really know what you're trying to say here. Given the vast majority of your posts I find it highly unlike you understand either but you go girl.Quote:
Originally Posted by vhatever
Quote:
Originally Posted by The Black Knight
You are confused about the fact that you said webber "just tells it like it is", when that same guy who "just tells it like it is", said the incident at malaysia had nothing to do with his retirement from F1, completely contrary to your earllier bogus claims in the original post. please take a basic english/logic course or something, as this is all very obvious and simple stuff you seem to not understand.
I really wouldn't waste your time Mr Knight. A room is very quiet if nobody responds :)Quote:
Originally Posted by The Black Knight
I don't see how the Malaysia incident had anything to do with his retirement. It was an incident, it happened, now it's over with. If Webber were ever going to retire it was going to be this year with the new rule changes happening for next year. You just like blowing things out of proportion.Quote:
Originally Posted by vhatever
PS Though it is not my first language, I can assure you my English is fine ;)
You're right, henners. I'll just ignore him.Quote:
Originally Posted by henners88
So what was your early claim based upon:Quote:
Originally Posted by The Black Knight
now you make the bogus claim that it was actually what is going to happen NEXT year. I guess its hard to keep track of all your lies.Quote:
Originally Posted by The Black Knight