Webber upbeat on Williams chances

Although the team have lost manufacturer backing and have forged a relationship with customer engine suppliers Cosworth, Webber believes early impressions of the car allied to the signing of new teammate Nico Rosberg have already given him cause for optimism.

Speaking about his first impressions from testing with the new Cosworth V8, Webber told Williams' website: " Obviously you realise the changes caused by the switch to V8 power-units.

"There is less power, and as a driver you are not happy with this. In consideration of this fact, our lap times were relatively good and I'm anxious to see how the forthcoming season will unfold, though I'm confident we will be successful."

Webber endured a frustrating 2005 campaign, where high pre-season expectations that he could even take his maiden Grand Prix victory were not achieved. His best result was third place in the Monaco Grand Prix.

"We definitely hoped to do better," he added. "It was frustrating for everybody. The season finished off okay, as we succeeded in improving our performance and managed to secure some good results.

"The middle part of the championship, however, was very hard for us - and there were many races together in a row. It was a long, hard season, but I learned a lot."

And looking ahead to 2006, Webber claimed that he saw no reason why the team and Rosberg were not ready to achieve much better results.

"My goal is, of course, to finish better in the championship than this year. But it's always the driver and the team together. Should we succeed as a team in being competitive right from the start, the result will automatically follow.

"Nico Rosberg is a young, highly motivated teammate. He is absolutely ready to go. He had a great season in GP2 and if he is not ready, then I really don't know who is. I'm looking forward to the battles with him."