Mark Webber has argued that being ‘a little too conservative at Turn 9’ cost him a shot at pole position in Melbourne on Saturday morning, with the Red Bull driver claiming second on the grid behind team-mate and reigning World Champion Sebastian Vettel.
The Australian, who finished just over four tenths of a second behind Vettel on the Q3 timesheets, was nonetheless pleased with his first qualifying performance of the year and felt slightly relieved to avoid any dramas in the mixed weather conditions.
"It’s always tricky to read how much you want to push with one attempt, knowing that if you bum the lap you’re tenth on the grid," Webber said after qualifying. "I think I got the balance right in terms of aggression, but I know where Seb got me on that lap; I was maybe a little too conservative at Turn 9. But you definitely take a front row start in those mixed conditions."
Webber is now fully focused on attempting to register his first Melbourne podium finish this afternoon, having never reached the the top three at his home venue.
"Today it’s another Grand Prix and I’ve got to focus very, very hard on getting the most out of the tyres and strategy," he said. "If I’m the first man home then that would be great. A podium would still be great, but the middle step would be sensational."
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| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  S. Vettel | Red Bull | 01:27.407 | 27 |
| 2. | M. Webber | Red Bull | 01:27.827 | 26 |
| 3. | L. Hamilton | Mercedes | 01:28.087 | 29 |
| 4. | F. Massa | Ferrari | 01:28.490 | 23 |
| 5. | F. Alonso | Ferrari | 01:28.493 | 26 |
| 6. | N. Rosberg | Mercedes | 01:28.523 | 28 |
| 7. | K. Raikkonen | Lotus | 01:28.738 | 27 |
| 8. | R. Grosjean | Lotus | 01:29.013 | 25 |
| 9. | P. di Resta | Force India | 01:29.305 | 23 |
| 10. | J. Button | McLaren | 01:30.357 | 24 |
| Full results | ||||
| Mark Webber | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| More Mark Webber photos | |||
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