Australian F1 driver Mark Webber says he wants to continue racing in Formula One beyond 2013 after signing another one year deal with team Red Bull Racing.
In his latest column for the BBC, Webber said he did have talks with Ferrari about joining good friend Fernando Alonso, but decided that staying at Red Bull was the right choice.
“Although I did have talks with Ferrari, staying with Red Bull was the right thing to do,” Webber wrote.
“I pretty much told Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz and team principal Christian Horner two or three years ago that I would finish my career with Red Bull. “It doesn’t get much better than what happened on Sunday – how we won and who we beat. How do you replace that when you’re not racing any more? Hopefully, I won’t have to find an answer to that question for a while.”
“I’m sure everyone understands the lure of racing for Ferrari, but in the end there were just too many pros to staying at Red Bull Racing – it was as simple as that.
“I’ve been there since 2007, just two years after the team was formed, and we have built a fantastic team. “We’ve won the last two drivers’ and constructors’ championships and we’re right in the fight again this year. “It’s very hard to turn your back on that sort of performance.
“The fact that I am trying to win the championship this year was also a consideration – it would have been that bit harder to keep the momentum going if I was moving to a rival team.
“That was a factor, but it was certainly not the biggest one.”
The Australian said he has no intentions to retire at the end of the 2013 season, despite being significantly older than most of his rival drivers.
“Because I’m 36 this summer, people are always asking me when I’m going to retire. But I’m not thinking about that at all,” Webber wrote.
“The contract is just for one year, but I’m looking to stay in F1 for longer than that.
“I watched an interview with (Welsh English Premier League soccer player) Ryan Giggs the other day and he was saying that you relax and enjoy it a bit more as you get older.
“You know you’re closer to the end than the beginning, so you want to make the most of the situation you’re in.
“You try to do that bit more, you perform better because you’re that bit wiser and you get better results, so you end up staying longer anyway.
“It’s an immensely challenging job trying to get the best out of a Formula 1 car and I’m competing with the best drivers in the world.”
Webber is currently second in the F1 championship behind Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso. The next race on the F1 calendar is the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim on July 20-22.
