Page last updated at 05:45 GMT, Thursday, 14 July 2011 06:45 UK
Webber given team orders on final lap
Mark Webber has revealed that he is in "positive" talks over a contract extension at Red Bull, despite his grievances over team orders during Sunday's British Grand Prix.
The 34-year-old was unhappy that he was asked not to try to overtake team-mate Sebastian Vettel for second place.
He told BBC Sport: "The team and I are talking about whether I continue with Red Bull in 2012 and it's positive.
"What happened on Sunday does not turn my world upside down."
During the final five laps of the race at Silverstone, which was won by Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, Webber was told over the team radio to "maintain the gap" behind Vettel, even though the Australian appeared to have superior pace to the German.
Webber revealed afterwards that he had ignored the order but was unable to pass championship leader Vettel in the final laps and finished third.
Red Bull's explanation for their stance was that they did not want to see their drivers collide and for the pair - and the team - to end up with no points from the race.
Webber and Vettel came together in the Turkish Grand Prix in 2010 - an incident that Red Bull feel is proof that their drivers are allowed to race each other.
However, at Silverstone, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said that, although he understood Webber's frustration, he had to put the team first.
Webber did not agree at the time but, without totally giving way, now appears to have somewhat softened his stance.
He added: "Christian and I had a chat about the situation after the race. We both put our cases forward and I think we came away seeing it from both perspectives.
"It was obviously a difficult situation but I still feel comfortable about what I did.
"In that situation, you are hit by conflicting emotions. You want to improve your position, irrespective of who it is in front of you - especially when it is someone at Sebastian's level, whom you have to work pretty hard to get back on to."
Credit: BBC (www.bbc.co.uk)
No comments:
Post a Comment