Mark Webber Looks Ahead to Sepang
By Ian Lockwood
April 7 2011
Mark heads to Sepang for this weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix in the belief that he can finish on the podium.
“After a disappointing race in Melbourne,” he says, “we’ve made some changes to the set-up of the car at this race. I wasn’t unhappy with the balance at Albert Park, but the lap times weren’t there and the tyre degradation was too high. If the new set-up has the expected results, I can race well at Sepang. I want to spray some champagne on Sunday afternoon.”
Mark has a good record in Malaysia. He scored his first front row qualifying position at the track in 2004 and he started from pole position last year, before finishing the race in second place.
“I like the track,” says Mark. “It has a good mix of high and low-speed corners, so it’s a good challenge for the drivers. There are also some long straights and heavy braking areas so overtaking will be possible, particularly with the new DRS wing. If the wing doesn’t work here, I don’t think it’s going to work anywhere.”
The long run to Sepang’s first corner raises the question about whether or not Red Bull Racing will race with KERS for the first time. The benefits from an extra 80bhp at the touch of a button are fairly obvious, but reliability is crucial.
“We didn’t use KERS in Melbourne because we weren’t completely confident about the reliability of our system,” says Mark. “We’re developing it all the time and we’ll test it again during Friday practice at Sepang. Only then will we make a decision about whether or not to race it. The car wasn’t too shabby without it in Australia, so we’re not going to rush it onto the car.”
As has been the case for the last two years, the start of the Malaysian Grand Prix will be at 4pm local time. Just when the rain usually arrives…
“I expect to use Pirellis wet tyres at some stage over the weekend,” says Mark. “But it never drizzles in this part of the world, it pours, and you risk flooding and all sorts. The rain doesn't make it much cooler in the cockpit either. It’s sure to be an eventful weekend.”