Mark Webber, the surprise joint leader of the Formula One world championship, is set to sign a new contract with Red Bull, shutting out the chance of a comeback by the former champion Kimi Raikkonen.
The 33-year-old Webber was expected to be overshadowed by his younger team-mate, Sebastian Vettel, but with back-to-back victories in Barcelona and Monaco the Australian has pulled alongside Vettel at the top of the drivers’ standings with 78 points.
Red Bull’s team principal, Christian Horner, said: “We have been happy with the job that Mark is doing, so why would you change? When we sit down and talk about it, it will be very straightforward. Mark is an important member of the team, he enjoys driving for the team and we have a great balance between our two drivers. So it is the usual thing: if it is not broken, don’t fix it.”
Raikkonen, the 2007 champion, was linked with Red Bull throughout the winter. But when Horner was asked whether he was interested in the Finn, he said: “No. Kimi has committed himself to rallying and he seems to be enjoying that environment.” The Guardian
Horner said: “It’s just a matter of sorting out the paperwork with his management. In the coming weeks that will be sorted.”
Webber will consider his F1 future but has publicly said he is happy at Red Bull.
Webber said: “It’s nice to be in the team after all the work we put in during those tough years, even when I first arrived at Red Bull.
“You are always hopeful that you get an opportunity to drive a car which is very competitive.
“We know that it’s an important part of the job but also as a driver you don’t hang around this business that long if you’re not performing either.”
Vettel, known to be a target for Mercedes, is under contract with Red Bull until the end of 2011, with an option to stay for 2012. BBC Sport
Vettel, widely seen as a champion in waiting, has a new chassis for the weekend after the team found an unspecified defect in his previous one and looks likely to be Webber’s main rival at Istanbul Park.
“Clearly Sebastian is in a good car, he’s quick and there’s going to be a healthy competition as always,” said the Australian.
“There’s no secret that we like to beat each other and that’s how it should be. It’s healthy, a very good balance within the team and Sebastian’s had his days in the past where he’s been virtually untouchable.
“I hope that they don’t happen too much in the future but he’s very quick, we know that, and I’ve got to try and keep those to a minimum. So it’s a good battle.” Yahoo! Eurosport
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