POSTED ON September 12th, 2011
Mark suffered his first retirement of the year at Monza this afternoon. He collided with Felipe Massa during the early stages of the race and he wasn’t able to make it back to the pits for repairs.
“It’s very frustrating because that was my first retirement in a long time,” says Mark. “Until Massa and I hit, my race had actually been going quite well. I was more than happy with my start procedure, which was a relief after Spa, and I got through Turn 1 unscathed.
“I then had a good re-start following the Safety Car period and got past Jenson [Button] straight away. So I’m sure I could have got a good result had I completed the race, but it wasn’t to be.”
Mark was trying to take Massa for fifth when they collided. He got a good tow along the pit straight and pulled to the outside of the Ferrari as they entered the braking zone. That forced Mark wide and he hit the high kerb at Turn 2, which catapulted him into the rear of Massa.
“I got a good run on Felipe along the straight,” says Mark. “But as soon as I hit the inside kerb in the second part of the chicane, I couldn’t avoid him. I lost my nose and was heading back to the pits for repairs when some bodywork got wedged under my front wheels on the run to Parabolica. I became a passenger and ended my race in the gravel trap.”
It was a disappointing end to a grand prix that promised much because Mark’s team-mate Sebastian Vettel dominated the race. Mark will have to hope that the RB7 is as competitive at the next race in Singapore as it was at Monza.
“We’ve been pleasantly surprised by the pace of the car at Spa and Monza,” says Mark, “and we can go to Singapore hoping for a good result. Even though I finished third in the race last year, the Marina Bay circuit hasn’t been one of my strongest tracks in the past. But I nailed Valencia – another track that’s been unkind in the past – earlier in the year and I’ll be looking to do the same in a couple of weeks in Singapore.”
The Singapore Grand Prix runs close to the two-hour time limit permitted for race, making it one of the toughest on the calendar for the drivers. The track’s bumpy and twisty, and the conditions are hot and humid.
“Singapore is a very tough race,” says Mark. “You have to be on top of your hydration during the build-up to the race, but I’ve been in this game for a few years; I know what to do.”
Credit: Mark Webber (www.markwebber.com)
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