Q & A with Mark Webber

Mark Webber: Actually it was pretty easy to be honest. Coming here last year I settled in pretty quickly to the team and obviously we had a pretty frustrating year last year with reliability.

But I was very keen to see how the team started off this year with the few changes in personnel and Christian doing a good job in getting a few new bodies in a few new places. We are seeing the fruits of that now because we have consistently performed at a lot of venues this year so far.

The car has, touch wood, been very reliable which is a very important part of grand prix racing these days. So, when that was all coming into place for me - on top of me working with the guys that we have got here - it is absolutely one of the best teams I have driven for in terms of how much I enjoy my work.

It is a very, very ambitious environment. It is very racy. They are very, very real with themselves. They are not dreaming of anything - and they are very, very keen to achieve good things. And we can be very proud of the season we have had so far.

With all of that going on, I thought that it was very, very easy for me to make the decision along with Flavio Briatore and his team to continue with Red Bull Racing into next year.

And I am fascinated to see how the new regulations go. Nobody knows who is going to design the fastest car, with all the KERS things. There is a lot in the 2009 championship that is uncertain, but what is certain is that I have got some continuity and I am happy continuing my work with Red Bull.

Q. Some people might say that fallings out down the pit lane are common during the season. Do you have any concerns about signing what other people might consider is early in the year?

MW: Well, I think that you never ever know what is going to happen down the line. You can hang out and wait forever. Clearly we don't have a car that is on Ferrari pace at the moment, but there are a lot of top teams that are very stable with their driver line-ups and I am very, very happy here.

Falling short of any drivers getting injured, I am in a stable situation, I am not a third driver, I am a competitive driver and consistently operating for Red Bull year in and year out now. We still have a very big job to do this year and a big mission to accomplish what we did here.

Next year, I don't like to look back on what I could or should have done - what seats were available. I live by the decisions I made and this is another one I think will be good for my career.

Q. You will have a new teammate next year, presumably a bit younger than David. How much are you looking forward to having a new teammate and the challenges that it is going to provide you and the team?

MW: I've enjoyed working with David personally. It has been very interesting working with someone who has won 13 grands prix and had a successful career - and will continue to push to the end. I am happy to think that I played a role in continuing to push David until the end of his career - keeping him on his toes and I am sure he has enjoyed that challenge as well. We worked well together.

Clearly I will have a different teammate next year. I've had a few in my career - I've had young ones, pretty ones, all sorts, and I am looking forward to another one next year. I will be motivated, don't worry, whichever one I get.

Q. How will this weekend go?

MW: We had a pretty good test here last week. Everyone was here and the weather was dry for all three days, which is unusual. The conditions look like they are going to be changeable this weekend, so I hope you guys have got some different clothes to wear the next few days because you might have some rain coming.

We will be trying to do what we've been doing since the first race in Melbourne - and it's a bit of a cliche but it is to try and get some points.

Unfortunately Toyota had a very good weekend in Magny-Cours. The car workswell for them there, so my focus is on Trulli and we need to make sure that we keep those guys under control - and as a team we are racing Williams, Toyota and Renault. Anything outside that is a bonus - obviously Heidfeld is having a little bit of a hard time, so you never know.

This weekend is for us a fantastic track, a fantastic first sector and all the drivers love driving here. And we have a local driver who has a lot of supporters so it should be a good event.

Q. Apart from Ferrari and McLaren, it seems Red Bull are the most consistent team on all types of tracks - unlike Renault and Williams who are down and up. Is that due to the characteristic of the car?

MW: Last year that was a bit of a weakness for us, so you are right that this year we were also quite strong in Canada as it is a very different track in terms of downforce level. I would say probably our weakest track this year has been Monte Carlo, so we need to keep an eye on Budapest - although in Monaco it did rain.

Every other weekend we have managed to scrape the maximum from the car. It is clear we have made the right decisions on race day - with good pit stops as it is not just about the car performing. Every Sunday afternoon, every Q3, I have done my bit, the team have done their bit.

And other teams have made some mistakes, and we hope we won't make any of those in the future. It is clear we won't have a perfect year, and there will be things that won't go our way, but we have to try and keep that as far away as possible because we are in motor racing and these things happen.

I am happy that teams like Williams are having some inconsistencies and we need to be able to capitalise on those and make sure we get there with the points.

Q. Is there pressure on you to be as successful as your compatriots Jack Brabham and Alan Jones?

MW: It is clear that Australians in sport, when we compete internationally, normally we try and do the best job we can and the record is not too bad in the other sports. But in motor racing we don't share the same record unfortunately.

In motorbikes we are quite good, but in F1 it has been very difficult for us to get some success. Jack had three world championships himself and he was a legend of the sport. He used to say to me: "Make sure you kick those Ferrari arses!" That is what motivated Jack.

AJ got himself in a good car with Williams and drove fantastically well. Since then it has been extremely dry for points, even for drivers to compete.

My first contract in F1 was only for three races, and I finished fifth in my first race luckily, which extended my contract a bit. I think about Jack and Alan and what they achieved - but it is a different era now. I believe I do my best every weekend, every session I go out. I cannot do any more than that.