Q & A with Mark Webber

Mark Webber: We both had a good run today. You always still have problems, but it all depends on where the opposition end up. You still have things that you want to work on, and improve, and that is the case for us still. We have to improve a few things, whether it is the grip in the last sector or the traction, or things like that.

We are always trying to improve the car, but it seems some of the other teams have had more of a hard time, which is always nice to see. We will see if it continues tomorrow. Normally our qualifying and race pace has been pretty comparable, which is a good sign for us.

Q. Have you noticed an improvement in the car in the last two races?

MW: The car felt very good in Barcelona, for me. That is a track that is very demanding on the car and, with the last sector as it is now, there is a lot of slow speed stuff as well as the quick stuff from the first sector. So it was good that the car was feeling really good in Barcelona, so I thought there was a chance we could extract a bit more here in Turkey.

We had a really bad P1, that we didn't have the car set that well for the first run. And then obviously I crashed in P2 so we recovered pretty well today. You don't actually feel the car improving that much - you feel some of the problems going away but it is always relative to where the opposition is.

And the good thing is that we have seen we are definitely chipping away in the right direction. We are not staying where we are or going backwards - the Barcelona upgrade looked like it worked really well for us. I hope it can continue.

Q. What do you think will be a quicker tyre over a stint?

MW: It is actually team dependent and even driver dependent in some cases. For us, the prime at the moment. Whether that will still be the case in the final stage of the race is another question, but early on the prime could be the tyre.

Q. Do you believe Red Bull Racing are now establishing themselves at the head of 'Group B' behind Ferrari, McLaren and BMW?

MW: I think that looking at what we did at Barcelona, and also chipping away in Bahrain, we have had three points finishes out of the last three races. Hopefully we can continue that tomorrow, and looking at today's form - I think a lot of credit needs to go to the team.

It is so easy to look like a wanker in this category because if you stuff a few things up you are nowhere. These guys have chipped away very hard over the winter, made some big calls on the RB4 compared to where we were with the RB3. It was very, very difficult.

I think the team needs a lot of credit for how we've gone about it, we've chipped away with a great relationship with Renault as well and it just goes to show you how fair they are playing that. And I think with the stability in the regulations, it lets us do that. It is harder for other teams to do that when the regulations have been stable for so long, with the exception of the control tyre.

It is a real credit for the team, some of the outfits we are competing against and sometimes beating is a lot of effort from an energy drink.

Q. And what do the improvement in results do for your own confidence?

MW: I have always said I won't be around forever fighting for 12th, 13th or 14th. I will just go do something else. I have no interest in doing that anymore, and I am massively motivated at the moment to come up and rack up the points, alongside Fernando, and fighting like at Barcelona. That is good. It motivated you during the week, and you are looking forward to each race when it is like that.

When you are getting smoked down the back every weekend and it is tough, then I would rather go ride my mountain bike with my dog.

Q. Where do you draw the line, at what point do you say you have had enough?

MW: Chipping away with points is nice, and everyone is very excited about this qualifying, but I try and almost keep a level head on it as well. We have had a good run in the last few races. Consistency is the key in every sport, and if we can continue to do that at this level then the whole station where we are now, which is still a good achievement, will take us to the next level.

Obviously we have got to smash a wasp nests up next year with the new regulations, KERS and slicks, but I think it will open the grid a lot more and make the teams a lot further apart. That is the challenge that Red Bull have if I drive here.

Q. How much time are you giving it?

MW: We are talking now. I am free next year, but I am massively keen to stay here. I hope to stay here. What I love about this team is that I am employed to drive the car, and if I have to do a track day or a PR day then I would rather skip it - rather than go and talk to people that don't want to see me and I don't want to see them. That is great.

Q. Where you are at the moment with the car, you are in a tight battle with Renault and Fernando. Does that give you more recognition? Is that an extra motivation?

MW: Absolutely. I think about it often. I strive myself hard to beat him. It is very motivating for me to race someone of Fernando's calibre because of how well respected he is as a driver. We have had some good fights already and hopefully they can continue.

Q. How much extra work did the crash yesterday cause you?

MW: It wasn't as bad as they first feared, which was good. It would have been nice to get another 15 or 20 laps, but the track temperatures are going to be hotter tomorrow so I don't think we lost too much in terms of like-for-like P2 on Sunday. The guys on the front of my car were at Jaguar before, and they said the last time I trashed the front of his car was Indy 2004. So hopefully I can keep that break that long again.