22/11/2004
NEWS STORY
Mark Webber, here you are at Williams BMW. You've actually joined the team. What are your feelings and initial impressions?
Mark Webber: Of course I'm extremely excited to come to a team with such history, and the results that they've had in the past 25 years in Formula One has been incredible. They've been a great team for the sport as well. Frank (team principal Sir Frank Williams) has run an awesome operation here for so many years. So I'm going to start up work shortly, and that's, I suppose, when it will really sink in, and I start work with the team proper.
And, of course, I think you've already probably received your first orders from Sam Michael, the technical director (on arrival for this interview).
MW: Yes, Sam is very much involved, of course, in the running of the team, and has a big input with how the other drivers go about their work as well. So I'm in contact with Sam quite a lot in terms of what's going on with the team, and what he's thinking, and what his feelings are on certain situations within the team. So it's important for me to stay close to Sam and work forward for the future.
And some work to do today when you finish this interview?
MW: Yeah, got a bit of work on. I've got to check my seat and things for the testing which is coming up, and also do a bit more work. Also meet a lot more people, which I haven't met yet at Williams. I've met a few of the people but, of course, there's a lot of people that work here. And, since leaving Jaguar, it wasn't right to do it before then, so now is probably a better time to go around and get to know the people I'm going to be working with.
Looking around the factory and the museum, there's a lot of history at Williams. Fantastic success over the years. Is that amount of history and success a bit daunting in any way, or does it give you some confidence for the future?
MW: Well, of course it's something which I want to try and build on, the history that they've had here. And the car, I hope, will be very good next year and gives us a good chance to challenge for victories very, very quickly. And straightaway I want to be up the front - and that's what it's all about. That's what we're striving towards, is to win Grands Prix, and if we win enough you never know what happens. But championships are even harder to get, I assume. But the wins are something which we have to look at immediately.
Very soon you're actually going to get to drive a Williams BMW for the first time. What are you expecting, especially in comparison to other F1 cars that you've driven?
MW: It's going to be small detail in every little area. The engine, how the aerodynamics work, how the chassis works, electronics, everything is working together to create the car which is probably quicker than what I have driven in the past, which was the Jaguar of course. And you look at a lap time of, let's say it's only one second quicker … the driver will feel that. It's not a huge amount if you just look at it on the stopwatch, but in our game it is, so I will be feeling that and the car will give me confidence, I'm sure, very, very quickly from the cars I've driven in the past. But, of course, then you want to build on that very quickly as well, and what's happening at the present moment is never good enough. You've got to be keep building.
So what are your aims for that first test in Barcelona?
MW: We will get to know the team, I think. I'm driving the old car and I'm going to be working mainly on tyres, so tyre testing is very important for us. So those two things are the biggest thing for me. It's a long way away from the first race, so testing is very, very important to lay the foundations for our campaign for next year, and I think Antonio (Pizzonia, Williams test driver and Webber's Jaguar teammate for two-thirds of the 2003 season) is going to be using a slightly different car to get more mileage on different components.
A little while ago you nearly had a teammate for next year (Jenson Button) but at the moment it seems you don't have one. Any thoughts on who it might be, or do you really care?
MW: No, I don't really care. I think I would have liked to have Jenson, of course, because he's someone who has proven himself at the front in Formula One. And that's what you always want, is some to compare yourself to at the highest level. But we also have drivers now which are testing over the (northern) winter that we know are very quick, they have proven themselves Anthony and Nick and Antonio, of course, have always been quick at certain stages. But it's about being quicker over the course of a season, so we will see what happens over the winter.
And it does seem to be that that test run later in the year with Pizzonia and Heidfeld and Anthony Davidson … is your expectation that your teammate will come from one of those three?
MW: I assume so, yes. I'm very confident that one of those three guys will probably be my teammate next year. I don't think there's anyone else coming out of the woodwork to upstage any of those three.
The Williams cars are made here in Grove and Williams is very much an English team, but they have an engine supplier, BMW, which is said to perhaps make the best motors, or at least the most powerful, in Formula One. You've got a reputation for getting very involved in the way your team operates, but on the engine side have you got any thoughts about how you will connect and get involved with the BMW people and the engine program?
MW: Again, it's very important for me to have a good relationship with them as a driver. As you say, it's a very important part of the program that the engine is working well, and Williams have been working with BMW now for a long time, so that does help. And the marriage … you always have to keep working on it to make sure that you get the best out of both packages. I will be going to Munich quite a lot to see the guys down there and, of course, I worked with another German manufacturer, Mercedes-Benz, in the early part of my career, so I know their style of work. And they're very, very precise and passionate about their sport, and motor racing for them is a great place for them to showcase their technology. So it's good for me to be involved with them.
I guess between now the first race in March next year it's going to be a busy schedule. What's your program between now and the first race?
MW: We've got three tests one the end of November and two tests early in December and that will be generally with the older car. And then the new car will be out in January/February some time, so that will be a very busy time in the lead-up to Melbourne. I've got three weeks off over Christmas and New Year, so have a bit of a break there, but of course we will still be in tune with the factory and see how things are going here. But I can't wait. I want to get in the car and keep testing and improving that for next year.
Normally you might get a chance to get home to Australia during the off season. Are you going to get a chance to do that in this off season coming up?
MW: No. I'm going to stay in England actually. Stay over here and focus on next year. I will be getting to Australia the week before the race, so looking forward to getting down there. And it's always great to start the season in Melbourne. It's a fantastic event, and I think that it will be even more special being able to compete at the front, which I'm looking forward to.
Sir Jack Brabham is a special name in Formula One, especially from an Australian perspective. I'm sure you know Jack, but what does the Brabham name mean to Mark Webber?
MW: Sir Jack Brabham was someone which was a huge hero for my father, and dad, I suppose, started his passion for motor sport. So I definitely wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for Sir Jack and the way he went about his business over here … extremely successful. Very canny. Brave. He just was so successful against a lot of the odds in beating bigger teams with smaller artillery, if you like. Three times world champion … that is something which is very special. It happened a long time ago, of course, but I still look up to Jack and constantly talk to him these days. And he's on his e mail every now and again, so he's a great guy for our sport and our country.
I guess Jack will be in Melbourne probably seeing some of this with the car he won one of those championships in.
MW: Yes, I think to have Jack still actively around and still passionate about the sport, and he's definitely got some good batteries, and it's good to have him, like I say, being around our sport and our event down there in Melbourne.
Another Australian, Alan Jones, raced for Williams 25 years ago and won a world championship. In fact, it was the first one that the Williams team won, and it was the last one by an Australian. Is that perhaps an omen for Mark Webber?
MW: Alan Jones, of course, had a huge amount of respect for the way he went about his work here at Williams. Like you say, he won his first and Williams' first world title here in 1980, and then continued on to win a few more Grands Prix the year after - and won his last race for Williams in Las Vegas in '81. So there is some history there with an Australian driver in the past. And I'm the next Australian to drive for Williams, and I hope that I can achieve what Alan achieved - and that would be good for everyone, I hope. There has been a bit of a gap (between F1 world titles for Australians), so hopefully we can get on top of it of pretty quickly.
As you say, there's been that gap for an Australian success in Formula One, but often when you read history about Williams and what Frank and Patrick say, and other drivers have said they often get judged at Williams against Alan Jones. Obviously every driver has his own level of judgment, but what's yours? Do you feel anything about coming to a team that might have a scale of judgment against its former drivers?
MW: Of course every team has had drivers in the past which have been good, bad or indifferent, and Williams have such a history and so many drivers that have driven for them. If you look at the names that have driven for Frank and Patrick, it's incredible. The talent and the diversity of drivers that they've had is amazing, so of course there is going to be times where I'm going to learn from their advice on how other drivers probably went about their work, because you always can learn - and I'm up for that. There might be times, hopefully, when they're very happy and proud of the work that I'm doing for them.
We spoke about Jack Brabham. Behind the scenes with Jack there was a guy who many people think was a secret weapon, Ron Tauranac, the technical guy with Brabham and with the Repco engines. Is there an element of the Brabham and Tauranac connection, a couple of Aussies taking on the world, with what's happening with you at Williams now with Mark Webber and Sam Michael?
MW: With Ron Tauranac, you're absolutely right, you had someone that did he was on the frontline with Jack and designing a car from start to finish, really, and they did take on the world. But it's probably a bit different with Sam and I. Obviously Sam has a very, very important role within Williams Grand Prix, but there is so many other partners and people involved in the success of a team now. We are both Australian, of course, we can get on well, but in a pressurised environment we need to be able to still work professionally with each other - and that's what has got to come ahead. The equivalent (person) at Jaguar, I got on extremely well with him, and he was Irish. So you have to work with what you've got, and I'm very lucky to be working with Sam.
I guess with Sam, over a beer at the pub, you will be able to understand what each other is saying.
MW: Exactly. We know a few of the Aussie slang words, of course, and the English guys give us a bit of a hard time about that, but we will be okay. We will convert them eventually.
Speaking of Sam Michael, is he now the key man for you to winning Grands Prix? That's clearly your aim. It's why you go racing. And a technical director is a very vital role. So is Sam the man that's the key to your championship aspirations?
MW: He's very, very important to me, of course, because of the influence that he has on the team and his judgment on things which happen today, tomorrow, six months down the line - and also at race weekends. The decisions that are made there are very important, so of course it's important for Sam and I to get on well. He is important to me; there is no question about it. But also a guy who is going to be on my fuel rig, my number one mechanic to prepare my car week in, week out. We have so many guys which are crucial to the performance. And then of course you've got BMW. Everything has to be working together, and it's up to Sam to nip all that together. So, yes, he is important, but he also needs to work with the team as well.
Mark, it was only back in March 2002 that you first raced Formula One and had that great day in Melbourne at Albert Park, which everybody remembers. So, virtually, in less than three years you've come, shall we say, from the rear of the grid hopefully, now through Jaguar, to the front of the grid with Williams. Is this a fairytale?
MW: I've been very fortunate and lucky, of course. Paul Stoddart originally, to give me that run in the Minardi wasn't easy. Paul put me in there under a lot of pressure from other people probably not to, but he did and then it did start and, of course, like you say, through Jaguar. And you always want to get better results, but it (Jaguar) actually did serve a purpose for me. It was a fantastic stepping stone for me to have a sniff at the front of the grid. But it was very hard for us to continue to compete at the front with Jaguar, and I worked with some incredibly good people there as well. So now, to have a phone call from Frank Williams to come and ask me to drive for him is something which I will never forget, and it will be great to have a long successful career here at Williams. And fairytales? I'm not big on fairytales, but I think we need to get some great results - and that will make us all sleep well at night.
Growing up in Queanbeyan near Canberra … at that time Formula One and all the big teams just must have seemed so far away. What's been the main factor in getting to where you are now? Has it been strategy, luck, management? How has is all come together?
MW: Probably a little bit of everything. When you leave Australia … there has been lots of drivers who have tried, and it's not easy for any of us. And to try and get through the junior categories and make the different decisions, it's never easy. And you can also think that you could slightly have done it better, or you wasted a little bit of time here, or how much did you learn there. What are you actually trying to achieve here? You are trying to focus on getting to Formula One and everything has to be decided on around that. So the way we got here was incredible, of course, and was very important, all the decisions we made coming through. Then you've got Paul Stoddart, Flavio Briatore, Ron Walker (Australian Grand Prix Corporation chairman), all the people that made my job easier I only drive the car which was very good and, like dad says, they're not flogging a dead horse. I had to get certain results at certain times, which was make or break for my career - otherwise I would be back in Australia. So here we are, and I haven't achieved anything in Formula One yet. I've got a lot more to achieve. I am at base camp at Everest, so I've got a long way to go.
You mentioned Flavio Briatore, who is obviously connected with Renault. And Flavio is a person that you've had an association with. And Renault was one of the big-improving teams this year. I gather for next year there was perhaps a time when you had an option of going to Renault. Why did you pick Williams ahead of Renault?
MW: Flavio and I spoke about it a lot, with Williams being quite keen on me and also Renault also wanting my services for '05. We needed to make a decision and, together, Flavio and I. I was consistent from the start with where I wanted to go, and that was Williams. Without being harsh against the guys at Renault, who again gave me a fantastic opportunity with a test role, and I probably know the guys at Renault better than any other team actually, the guys on the floor there are incredible people, but with Williams the attraction was this (history) really, to come in and try to add to the history. And to drive for Frank is a dream for me. And, of course, you've got the Sam Michael angle as well. And to just come and work for Williams is incredible for me. They're interested in winning races and interested in car racing - and that's what I like. There's a lot of other trappings that come with certain things, if you like, in teams, but we're here to do a job - and that's what I'm interested in.
Speaking of winning races, Williams won the last race of this season in Brazil and, of course, the expectation: can they back it up by winning the first race of next season in Melbourne? Which is you, and a Williams BMW that's put together by Sam Michael. Is that possible? And do you feel any pressure that you've now got to deliver a back-up win from this year's last victory (by Williams)?
MW: What happened in Brazil is long forgotten when we get to Melbourne. I think it's all very clear. When we get to Melbourne we have to do our best to win races, and Melbourne is one race of 18 of the championship. Of course, it's always nice to try and get a special result in front of your home fans, and the pressure is only as much as you make it. I've got to go down there and be on top of my game, as I have at any other track around the world. Looking forward to putting on a good result down there in front of the home fans.
You've done 50 GPs now and your best result was that fifth place in Melbourne, that fantastic day. Is it now a situation where you've got a combination of Williams and BMW and Michelin tyres and the people around you? Do you feel that you can quickly improve on that fifth place in terms of results?
MW: Yeah, I have to, I think. Of course, fifth place … I'm not really thinking about that. Over the (northern) winter it's clear the bar has been lifted, absolutely substantially, since that result. And actually there was drives with Jaguar this year where I finished in the top six, where there was not anywhere near as much attrition as there was on that day in Australia, so I know that I can finish Grands Prix a lot faster with a different car. So the number of the pit board just changes. So I have to make sure that the number gets smaller and smaller every race.
Mark, can you tell us something about some of the influences on you in getting to Formula One? Some of the people who have had an impact on Mark Webber's life and career?
MW: I've had a lot of incredible people advise me and help me along the way, whether it's sporting people that I look up to whether it's Michael Doohan (Australia's five-time motorcycle racing world champion) or Lance Armstrong. I love watching sport. I'm a mad sportsman and love watching all sports, so you can draw motivation and inspiration from that. But also you need, like you said, the people that have influenced you through your career are the people that you want to listen to, and the people that really you don't want to listen to are only telling you what you want to hear in that junior stages of your career. Of course, my father and Ann. I've got such a small team of people around me. I don't need 1,000 people to tell me how awesome you are. It's not about that. It's about keeping it simple and focusing on what's important to you. Of course, Paul Stoddart and Flavio and these people, and John Harnden (former Australian Grand Prix Corporation chief executive, now heading Melbourne's 2006 Commonwealth Games), who was part of the Australian Grand Prix team. Lots (of people). The list is just ridiculous (long) down there in Australia, the people that have just helped me get through different stages of my career, and I owe them a lot in the next few years as well to deliver for myself, but also for them.
You mentioned one name there and it's someone who I understand is probably a personal favourite: Lance Armstrong, the great cyclist. I understand you recently spent some time with Lance?
MW: Yeah, I went to Texas and did some riding with Lance, which was awesome. We did a lot of mountain biking and a lot of road biking, which was good fun. Obviously he's pretty handy on the bike. It was a tiring week for me, and each day got worse because I obviously got a lot more fatigued than Lance did. But we did some awesome things, and he's a real inspiration. And hopefully we can get into some races this year.
So what's going to change now that you're with Williams, Mark? Are the expectations from the public and everybody going to be so much greater?
MW: When you come to a team like Williams, of course the results, hopefully, will be a lot better. And you do have more demands on your time. And, like I say, I will try and keep it simple, and just keep concentrating on the racing - and it should be okay.
As always, you get to start the championship season at your home race, the Foster's Australian Grand Prix. What's it going to be like arriving at home as a driver for one of the really elite teams in Formula One?
MW: It's going to be a very special moment in my life, of course, to line up down there. And hopefully we can have a good (northern) winter and arrive in Melbourne in good shape. Of course, you always want more time to prepare and make sure you are ready for the first race, but I think we can do a good race in Melbourne and give the fans something to definitely cheer about. It should be the best Australian Grand Prix we have had in a long time. And it will be really, really good to get a great result for the people of Australia, not just in Melbourne but of course the whole nation. So it will be good.
Just extending that a little bit. I guess the real Mark Webber fans probably are going to have an expectation about next February/March when you're down there. Can it be Mark Webber and Williams BMW? What can you deliver at Albert Park, do you think?
MW: We will see how the winter goes. I think there's a lot of water to go under the bridge yet. We can arrive in Melbourne in absolutely incredible shape, we really can. Or we can arrive there with still a lot more work to do. And how that turns out is the next three months that's ahead of us, but of course we will be disappointed if we're not on the podium at the first race. That's where we have to be, and - if the top step is there to be taken - then of course we will fight very hard to be on the top step.
A question we asked Sam Michael about … Ferrari, and the team, and being the benchmark. And you can't talk about Ferrari without mentioning Michael Schumacher as a driver. He is clearly the benchmark in the sport at the moment. Is that the way you see it? Michael as the benchmark? And how do you see your competition against him, and the other drivers, next year?
MW: Michael, the way he has achieved in the last five or six years has been absolutely incredible, and for us to get on top of that is going to take a monumental effort. But that's the target for us, and if you are on top of Michael then are you on top of everyone. You don't know. It still could be McLaren with Kimi or Juan Pablo, or anyone could have a strong season in the next few years. So we have to make sure we're covered at all angles. Of course, we have to race Michael. It's not a big deal. It's exciting. And we're up for it.