Webber takes Red Bull by the horns

BUOYED by his breakthrough formula one victory, Mark Webber says his Red Bull car is faster than title leader Jenson Button's Brawn, even though that car is expected to sizzle as Europe's summer sets in.

While the Englishman remains a significant 22.5 points ahead of Webber, the margin of Button's lead has been steadily reduced in recent grands prix.

While Brawn cars struggled during the recent cooler weather, they're expected to apply extra heat as the mercury rises for the next two races, scheduled for Budapest and Valencia. But Webber takes comfort in knowing the Red Bull car, in most conditions, is now faster than Button's Brawn.

"The guys got a fantastic grip on the new 2009 regulations," he said of Red Bull's Adrian Newey-led design team. "It was a very tough set of new rules to design a car around. The design team knew what areas to concentrate on, in terms of performance, and since the car hitting the track, Seb [teammate Sebastian Vettel] and I have developed the car together with our brilliant engineers.

"I think being able to perform at the top of your game - with the machinery that allows you to do so - gives you confidence. Not only do we have a rocket-ship in the RB5 but we've also had incredible reliability this year - and that boosts your confidence.

"There is an air of confidence about a winning team/driver but it's a fine line and you need to apply yourself just as much as before you won because in sport there's always more troughs than peaks."

However, the one-time ballboy for the Canberra Raiders, conceded the super-smooth Button remained firm favourite to take the ultimate prize, despite the mid-season Red Bull domination.

"You can never say never, but Jenson would have to have a lot of bad luck not to win the world championship," Webber said.

"He doesn't make any mistakes, he's very much the complete driver and I can only see the car letting him down. It won't be due to any errors on his part."

Webber has not raced for Ferrari or McLaren or Renault, the glamour big-buck teams that have done most of the winning in the recent past but he always knew that given a shot in the right car, he could be a winner.

"I think this is the first year I have really had a chance to win grands prix," Webber said from his home in England.

"I've now crossed the uncharted waters of pole position and a victory, so that can only help. It can't be a hindrance, that's for sure."

Webber, who has taken 130 races to win, aims to keep the momentum going. His past three grands prix have produced two seconds and a first.

"I hope that the momentum can continue, even if there is no doubt there will be some tough races in the future," he said. "But getting this first win means that when it's close, the races might seem more straight-forward for me."

Despite his wild reaction to his win, he's not expecting to have any difficulty in putting on his race face and getting back to business.

"Yes, that was definitely raw emotion you heard," he laughed when talking about his screams of "Yeeeessss!" after crossing the line. "I've been told people have been downloading it as their ringtones and alarm calls!"

Source: The Sun-Herald

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