Webber made his F1 debut in 2002
|
Australian Mark Webber is to join David Coulthard at Red Bull next season.
The 29-year-old Webber joins Red Bull after last week deciding to leave Williams, where he will be replaced by Austrian Alexander Wurz.
Webber's move means Austrian Christian Klien is without a drive after two seasons with the team.
The Red Bull drive for next season had become highly coveted after F1 design guru Adrian Newey joined the team from McLaren in February.
With Webber out of the equation and McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen looking destined for Ferrari, Renault are now tipped to turn to test driver Heikki Kovalainen to replace McLaren-bound Fernando Alonso at Renault.
Red Bull boss Christian Horner said Webber had "undoubted speed and ability" and "the determination and motivation needed to succeed".
 |
David Coulthard's still one of the best drivers on the grid
Red Bull boss Christian Horner
|
Webber, who drove for the Jaguar team that was taken over by Red Bull, said he believed he was joining the team "at exactly the right time for success in the future".
The ex-Minardi driver added: "It's clear that the team is very hungry for long-term success, it has a very talented group of personnel and there seems to be a real sense of team spirit and unity."
|
FIVE LIVE VIEW
|
Webber left Jaguar for Williams at the end of 2004 and was effectively replaced by Coulthard, who landed Red Bull's first podium finish in Monaco earlier this season.
Coulthard said he had high expectations for the 2007 season.
"I can feel that the team is really beginning to gel as a group," said the Scot.
"I'm looking forward to raising the performance of the team and the car and to see Red Bull Racing become a regular points scorer, in with a good shout for achieving podiums and wins."
Horner said it had been "an easy decision" to extend Coulthard's contract.
"David's still one of the best drivers on the grid," he said.
~RS~a~RS~International~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~51~RS~){kind=small}
E-mail this to a friend
Printable version
