Webber Wins but Red Bull's Year

So Mark Webber gets his first win of the season in the final race thanks in no small part to Sebastian Vettel’s gearbox ‘issue’. Vettel’s normally bulletptoof transmission needed careful nurturing from the cockpit but it was interesting that the problem abated long enough for him to engage in a bit of fastest lap trading with Webber in the closing laps.

Vettel’s pit radio communication suggesting that it was “just like Senna in ’91” was confirmed by the world champion afterwards as meaning that he was comparing his gearbox situation to the manner in which the late Brazilian raced to the flag in Interlagos twenty years ago with a malfunctioning gearbox.

Suggestions that Vettel might just as easily be referring to the way Senna let Gerhard Berger back into the lead in the Japanese Grand Prix of 1991 while he cruised to second place and his third championship title have been branded unduly cynical...

Webber did a solid job and, most importantly of all, was able to convert a front row start into second place on the short run to turn one, thereby placing himself in the position of maximum opportunity should Vettel hit trouble.

It would be churlish to criticise Webber for his performances given his significant weight disadvantage to Vettel, a penalty that prevents him from using as much ballast as the world champion and therefore makes it difficult for his engineers to effectively manage the weight distribution of his car.

It’s a particularly acute problem off the start line but Webber made the best of a tough situation in Interlagos over the weekend as he dealt with Jenson Button and fast starting Fernando Alonso in the early stages.

It seems as if Webber, as much as his weight issues, has struggled to get on terms with Vettel all season because of his difficulty in being able to understand how to get the most out of the new for 2011 Pirelli tyres.

With the performance differential this season there has inevitably been a search for answers and this has moved his weight penalty back into the forefront of public consciousness.

It could just as easily be said that the gap between them is a factor of Vettel’s development as a driver this season having won the title last year. Certainly his 2011 title win will be remembered as less dramatic, that is less error strewn, than last year.

Either way the topic of driver’s weight and height is once more on the public agenda. Do we really want to go down the road of denying talented young drivers a fulfilling single seater career because of their vital statistics?

Cockpit dimensions are bigger than ever but more can be done. It’s a relatively easy thing to frame the cockpit regulations to take into account the fact that the human population gets taller with each generation.

Even at that the lighter drivers will still retain an advantage because extra ballast to bring the car up to the minimum weight can be moved around the car, offering more variables on car set up and thus potentially better chassis handling.

Therefore if the ballast is fixed in one spot, or perhaps even banned and teams are encouraged to make cars that are much sturdier, then Webber and his ilk would a level playing field.

Either way, the likeable Aussie finished the year on a high and will be chomping at the bit come the start of winter testing.

Jenson Button’s late race pass on Alonso demonstrated his current relatively rocket-like pace by dragging the undeserving Ferrari package into a podium position for much of the race. He really is driving the wheels off that thing.

Meanwhile, Button crafted an impressive podium from his less than competitive McLaren for whom Hamilton was an almost anonymous figure until his gearbox eventually failed in a way Vettel’s never got round to doing.

It was another perfect weekend for Red Bull and a fitting way to end a season that has seen them consistently outperform their only vaguely realistic challengers McLaren and Ferrari throughout the year.

It’s up to the other teams to catch them now and, as they complete the final touches on the design before making the new cars for next year, there will be  it’s usually easier to catch up than lead from the front.