Monday 12 July 2010

I feel pleased for Mark Webber

I should feel a bit sorry for Christian Horner since I actually have some sympathies for what the team did this weekend - but then again I don't because of what happened in Turkey and also the abysmal way the team handled the situation.

Mark Webber a fortnight ago

Anyway, last week, Red Bull decided to try out a new front wing design that seemed to gain them 0.1seconds a lap which is a huge amount in Formula One these days. Unfortunately for everyone, the one fitted to Vettel's car failed and this is where Horner and Co. made the decision to take the one off Webber's car and give it to Vettel - this looked remarkably like favouritism - something the team were accused of after Turkey. All commentators saw it this way, especially when the team announced that this had been done for "Championship reasons". And, importantly, Webber saw it this way as well and was seriously angry.

In qualifying, the wing helped Vettel get to pole position with Webber in second place. However, when the race started, Vettel had a very poor start allowing Webber to get ahead with Lewis Hamilton right on his tail. Vettel cut across the track to try and stop them and quickly backed off when he realised they were on for another collision but did manage to touch Hamilton's car slightly. Only slightly but enough to cause a puncture which took Vettel out of the battle and eventually put him back to last place after he pitted.

A few times this Season, commentators have reported that people were saying that "Vettel can't overtake" - I don't know who these people are, but they were well and truly proved wrong as Vettel, admittedly with the help of a safety car, fought his way right back up to seventh. Meanwhile, Webber ran the perfect race, leading to the end with Hamilton chasing hard but not having the legs to keep up.

As he crossed the line, the BBC viewers were treated to the radio feed with Webber saying to his boss, "Not bad for a number 2 driver!" with Horner responding something along the lines of "You're allowed to smile now!"

The result was poetic justice - karma - call it what you will but Horner was then treated to an embarassing interview with Humphrey, Coulthard and the brilliantly acerbic Eddie Jordan - very entertaining. Horner made the point that should have been made clear to his drivers at the start of the season and should have been emphasised when the decision to take the wing was made - that if they only have one component that both drivers want, it should go to the one with the most championship points at that time. It is a sensible rule, employed by F1 teams since F1 was invented and Horner did point out that at the next race, since Webber now has more points, he would get any disputed component.

Vettel was interviewed after the race and I believe that he had seen the error of his ways in Turkey and was a bit embarassed himself at the furore at Silverstone which was not, after all, his fault - although the crappy start was. He said, "Obviously I focus on myself and so does he I guess. Especially after what happened in the past people have different opinions, I have opinion, I have my experiences and sometimes, good and bad, you get to know people a little better and see their true faces. So I think I have learned my lesson and focus on myself."

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