Within 7 races, the 34-year old Australian managed no less than 4 wins and was at one point regarded as the man to beat for the F1 crown. It all crumbled down in the end though, something that made a lot of people think Webber will not get a better chance at becoming world champion than the one he had in 2010.
Red Bull enjoyed a head start for their 2010 campaign due to a competitive predecessor for their incredibly fast RB6, the 2009-spec RB5, but Ferrari and McLaren are poised to further catch up to their Milton Keynes rivals by next year. Add Mercedes to that mix, along with probably a competitive Renault lineup, and you have a quite competitive roster going for the same goal, the world title, in 2011.
After failing to win the title, Webber looked confident to get back into F1 crown contention in 2011, probably his last season with Red Bull Racing, and his team manager Christian Horner echoed his comments the other day.
“He is driving tremendously well. This year he has performed in an exceptionally hard year and I think there are lessons that he will take out of 2010 that he will build on in 2011,” said Horner, according to Autosport.
“So many drivers of the five main contenders can look back at the season with ifs and buts, all having been in contention at some point in the year - the only time Sebastian led the championship was after Abu Dhabi.”
“Mark led for several months during the summer. Obviously there is disappointment in not having achieved his ultimate goal, but I think he has driven very, very well this year. He will recharge his batteries and will come back in 2011 with the lessons that he has learned this year, and I think he'll push equally as hard and be equally as competitive.”
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