10/03/2013
NEWS STORY
Though his 2013 season hasn't even begun yet, the big question for many is whether Mark Webber will be back on the grid in 2014.
Turning 37 in August, Webber will be the oldest driver on the grid next weekend, with Kimi Raikkonen and Jenson Button next up on 33. Though he has another year with Red Bull, his seventh with the Austrian outfit, Helmut Marko has made no secret of the fact this will be his last.
Attending an event at Eastern Creek Circuit in Sydney, ironically the same track where his father first strapped him into a Formula Ford nineteen years ago, almost to the day, it is natural that the big question on everyone's lips was will Webber have an F1 seat in 2014.
'It's completely obvious that I'm not at the start of my career any more," he told reporters, "but I'm also achieving some very good results. 'While I continue to do that and while I enjoy my work, I'll continue. Whether I was born in '76 or '86 is irrelevant.''
''It starts and stops with me,'' he continued. ''You always have to perform, especially when you're aiming for podiums in this game and it's no different this year. So I'm going to go out and enjoy my racing this year, but still obviously with that steely determination to make sure that we make every opportunity count and continue to do well.''
Looking ahead to next weekend, Webber is aware that his stiffest opposition will come from the guy on the other side of the Red Bull garage.
''Seb is obviously off the back on an incredible run and he'll absolutely be a contender for the win,'' he said. ''We know that. It's completely obvious with how well he's been driving. 'But there's certainly no reason why I can't put together a very good weekend as well, which is what we've seen with the testing so far. I've been very quick and very comparable, so that's been good. So, yeah, we're in the ballgame.'
''I'm just looking forward to getting in the car and doing that bit," he laughed, rather than all the other stuff . 'Testing is good, but we just want to get racing now.''