Webber warns Red Bull: "The RB21 must be usable by more than one person on the planet"

Who better than Mark Webber to talk about the situation of the “number 2 drivers” at Red Bull Between 2007 and 2013, the Australian competed in 129 Grands Prix with the Austrian team (winning nine) and found himself in this uncomfortable position when he had Sebastian Vettel as a teammate, at a time when the German was racking up victories and world titles. Nevertheless, Mark Webber never found himself threatened by repeated poor performances... which was the case for many of his successors, like Pierre Gasly, Alexander albon, Sergio Pérez and recently, Liam Lawson.

The New Zealander even broke the record for the shortest stint at Red Bull, being demoted to Racing Bulls after just two Grands Prix. Never in the running in Australia or China, Liam Lawson struggled with the RB21, which many considered too advanced and too complex to drive. Some even theorize that the single-seaters designed in Milton Keynes are specially developed for Max Verstappen, and that the second pilot must adapt – or undergo – the characteristics of the mount.

In the podcast Formula For SuccessDavid Coulthard – himself a former Red Bull driver – asked Mark Webber how the late Eddie Jordan would have reacted to the driver swap announcement. To which the Australian replied: "I think he would have said it's the right decision. I think he [would have said Lawson] needs to be released. He's going to have the opportunity to calm down a bit, to go back to a 'small' team where he already has experience. He's only done two races with the parent team but it's clear it's a real challenge [to drive the RB21]. Max [Verstappen] is the only one who can extract the potential from this car."

“A few tenths is a huge gap in our field, but Liam hasn’t felt comfortable in this car. Can he find his feet and get going again in a smaller team? And if Yuki doesn’t perform in this car, what happens? What if it’s always [like this] and they’re all struggling [at Red Bull]? It’s going to be a very interesting dynamic.”, adds the former pilot of F1, now converted into a consultant and manager ofOscar piastri.

Webber draws parallels between Red Bull and Honda in MotoGP

To illustrate his point, and warn Red Bull of the potential danger to which the Austrian team is exposed, Mark Webber notably drew a parallel with Honda's situation in MotoGP with Marc Marquez. The Spaniard has long single-handedly carried the Japanese manufacturer to the top, facing teammates struggling with the Japanese bike. When the eight-time world champion left in 2023, Honda found itself at the back of the grid, lost in the development of its bike. Even today, two years after Marc Marquez's departure, Honda has not managed to get back on track, and Mark Webber fears a similar situation for Red Bull if Max Verstappen were to leave.

"There was a gap of two or three tenths per sector [between Verstappen and Lawson], and that is completely unacceptable. (…) The scenario that Red Bull finds itself in [is] trying to have two drivers who contribute to the performance, let alone the points. There must be corners where the second driver shows Max the way forward, but that is not the case, underlines the Australian. Max is literally carrying the whole car on his arms. (…). Who knows how long he'll stay at Red Bull, he could be there for another three or four years, but the team also has to make sure that this car is usable by more than one person on the planet." Yuki tsunoda Will he succeed in proving Mark Webber wrong? The answer will be revealed this weekend at Suzuka.

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