Saturday: Webber takes pole and sets a record with the Red Bull
Mark Webber scored the 13th pole position of his career today in Abu Dhabi, narrowly beating his teammate, Sebastian Vettel, by a tenth of a second. The Red Bull driver set a new record for an Australian driver, surpassing the number of pole positions held by an Australian in F1 (previously held by Jack Brabham). The Red Bulls proved stronger than the Mercedes only in Q3 but couldn't have started the Grand Prix better tomorrow by securing an all-Red Bull front row.
Mark Webber – 2nd and 1st:
This weekend started smoothly for us. It’s not the easiest of circuits because of the changing temperatures. We raced in the afternoon and then again in the middle of the night, so we constantly have to adapt to these changing conditions (both the driver and the machine).
The Q1 and Q2 sessions weren’t great, but then we made some adjustments to the car and we were able to improve. I knew I had to improve in certain sections of the track, which Sebastian [Vettel] had already managed to do. I was able to work on improving and also did a good job. So I’m happy with this pole position and we’ll see what we can do to be more competitive tomorrow for the race.
Sebastian Vettel – 1st and 2nd:
« Above all, I believe it’s a good result for the team. At the start of qualifying, I think the Mercedes were really strong, both Nico [Rosberg] and Lewis [Hamilton]. With Mark [Webber], we stayed calm but they were very fast. In Q3, we were able to find that little extra which allows us to be in front. Mark put in a very good lap and I congratulate him. I could have done a bit better but I’m not sure it would have been enough. Mark deserves to be on pole position today. He did a good lap without mistakes. It’s a good start for the team and we will be strong in the race tomorrow. »
