Post by Southern Pirate on Jul 11, 2009 20:44:59 GMT -7
Australia's Webber rides storm to first F1 pole
NURBURGRING (AFP) — Australian Mark Webber celebrated a "very special day" on Saturday when he grabbed his maiden Formula One pole position ahead of Sunday's German Grand Prix.
The 32-year-old Red Bull driver became the first Australian driver since Alan Jones in 1980 to achieve the feat of claiming the prime starting position for a Grand Prix.
Overcoming all of his rivals on a day of capricious and treacherous weather in the Eifel mountains, Webber proved that after 128 previous races he has the dedication, hunger and talent to lead the field.
He grabbed pole position ahead of Brazilian veteran and wet weather expert Rubens Barrichello and his Brawn GP team-mate championship leader Briton Jenson Button.
His Red Bull team-mate German Sebastian Vettel was a disappointed fourth on home soil and in front of an army of fans urging him on to fulfil their dream that he can become Germany's next Michael Schumacher.
Webber said: "It is very special day for me. To get pole... I've been close a few times in the past and on pole, fuel-corrected, a few times, but that doesn't count.
"We are here now and the team has done a great job all weekend, we got very tested in that session, but we did the job.
"I think that the car is working very well here, but talking to my engineer, it was so hard. We learned a little bit in Q2 with Rubens doing that lap -- he did a very good lap."
Barrichello surprised many, at that stage, by clocking a fast lap on dry slick tyres as the circuit dried following a rain shower.
"It was chaotic to read what we needed at the end," said Webber. "Obviously you call on experience, you have a great team of people around you, they are on pit wall and making the right calls - these are the best drivers in the world you know.
"It was difficult knowing what the track was going to do, how greasy the track was and what tyre to use. It was a very difficult session, but one in which our team did well and that is why we got pole."
Webber said he is now aiming to turn his pole position into his first Formula One victory, and he feels confident he can do it.
"I hope so. I am in a fantastic position to do it, these guys (the Brawn drivers) have had a strong season, but we are looking forward to the fight. I am up for trying to win my first race tomorrow," he added.
"I think a nice boring GP for me would be fantastic. We are ready for all conditions. We know we can compete.
"It is a great situation to be in, the fight for podiums, and obviously to win at this level you need everything to go for you. I've been close, had a few seconds, the day might come and it may be tomorrow..."
Born in Queanbeyan in New South Wales, on August 27, 1976, Webber was destined for a career in motorsport. His father Alan, a motorcycle dealer and racing enthusiast, was at the track to see him take pole position.
Webber was raised to love sport. A former ball boy for the premiership-winning rugby league team, the Canberra Raiders, in the 1980's, he followed the example of his childhood hero Frenchman Alain Prost to go into motor racing as soon as he could.
He began on two wheels, following another hero American Kevin Schwantz, before going into karting and on to Formula Ford. At one time, he helped fund his career by working as a driving instructor at Sydney's Oran Park Raceway.
A tireless worker, Webber is a popular member of the F1 fraternity and paddock people who respect his work ethic and the determination that took him to Britain to further his career in 1995.
He survived spectacular accidents at Le Mans as a sportscar driver with Mercedes-Benz before joining fellow-Australian Paul Stoddart's team - becoming Australia's first F1 driver since David Brabham in 1994 when he debuted in Melbourne for Minardi in 2002, scoring the team's first points in three years.
That set him off on a career that saw him move to Jaguar and Williams before he joined Red Bull, on the way also becoming a director of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association, the Formula One drivers' union.
That confirmed his standing in the sport and other drivers' respect for him. This increased this year when he made his return after a badly-broken leg suffered last November during a head-on crash with a car while cycling during his own 'Pure Tasmania Challenge' to raise funds for cancer charities.
NURBURGRING (AFP) — Australian Mark Webber celebrated a "very special day" on Saturday when he grabbed his maiden Formula One pole position ahead of Sunday's German Grand Prix.
The 32-year-old Red Bull driver became the first Australian driver since Alan Jones in 1980 to achieve the feat of claiming the prime starting position for a Grand Prix.
Overcoming all of his rivals on a day of capricious and treacherous weather in the Eifel mountains, Webber proved that after 128 previous races he has the dedication, hunger and talent to lead the field.
He grabbed pole position ahead of Brazilian veteran and wet weather expert Rubens Barrichello and his Brawn GP team-mate championship leader Briton Jenson Button.
His Red Bull team-mate German Sebastian Vettel was a disappointed fourth on home soil and in front of an army of fans urging him on to fulfil their dream that he can become Germany's next Michael Schumacher.
Webber said: "It is very special day for me. To get pole... I've been close a few times in the past and on pole, fuel-corrected, a few times, but that doesn't count.
"We are here now and the team has done a great job all weekend, we got very tested in that session, but we did the job.
"I think that the car is working very well here, but talking to my engineer, it was so hard. We learned a little bit in Q2 with Rubens doing that lap -- he did a very good lap."
Barrichello surprised many, at that stage, by clocking a fast lap on dry slick tyres as the circuit dried following a rain shower.
"It was chaotic to read what we needed at the end," said Webber. "Obviously you call on experience, you have a great team of people around you, they are on pit wall and making the right calls - these are the best drivers in the world you know.
"It was difficult knowing what the track was going to do, how greasy the track was and what tyre to use. It was a very difficult session, but one in which our team did well and that is why we got pole."
Webber said he is now aiming to turn his pole position into his first Formula One victory, and he feels confident he can do it.
"I hope so. I am in a fantastic position to do it, these guys (the Brawn drivers) have had a strong season, but we are looking forward to the fight. I am up for trying to win my first race tomorrow," he added.
"I think a nice boring GP for me would be fantastic. We are ready for all conditions. We know we can compete.
"It is a great situation to be in, the fight for podiums, and obviously to win at this level you need everything to go for you. I've been close, had a few seconds, the day might come and it may be tomorrow..."
Born in Queanbeyan in New South Wales, on August 27, 1976, Webber was destined for a career in motorsport. His father Alan, a motorcycle dealer and racing enthusiast, was at the track to see him take pole position.
Webber was raised to love sport. A former ball boy for the premiership-winning rugby league team, the Canberra Raiders, in the 1980's, he followed the example of his childhood hero Frenchman Alain Prost to go into motor racing as soon as he could.
He began on two wheels, following another hero American Kevin Schwantz, before going into karting and on to Formula Ford. At one time, he helped fund his career by working as a driving instructor at Sydney's Oran Park Raceway.
A tireless worker, Webber is a popular member of the F1 fraternity and paddock people who respect his work ethic and the determination that took him to Britain to further his career in 1995.
He survived spectacular accidents at Le Mans as a sportscar driver with Mercedes-Benz before joining fellow-Australian Paul Stoddart's team - becoming Australia's first F1 driver since David Brabham in 1994 when he debuted in Melbourne for Minardi in 2002, scoring the team's first points in three years.
That set him off on a career that saw him move to Jaguar and Williams before he joined Red Bull, on the way also becoming a director of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association, the Formula One drivers' union.
That confirmed his standing in the sport and other drivers' respect for him. This increased this year when he made his return after a badly-broken leg suffered last November during a head-on crash with a car while cycling during his own 'Pure Tasmania Challenge' to raise funds for cancer charities.