Webber confident of further success in 2010
Webber has learnt lessons from this season
Thursday, 22, Oct 2009 02:43
By Adam Leveridge.
Mark Webber believes he can continue his momentum through the winter and be a season-long championship challenger in 2010.
The Aussie remained in the championship hunt until the end of the European season when a series of retirements dropped him down the order in the standings.
However, Webber is sure that the inroads he has made with the Red Bull team this year will help him mount an even stronger challenge next year.
"Our hope for 2010 has to be to go for the championships," Webber wrote in his BBC column.
"There is only one more position that this team can get, so that is what we have to aim for.
"We need to keep improving.
"Up until Singapore there were only a couple of points between Sebastian and I so there is absolutely no reason at all why I can't fight for the championship next season."
The Red Bull driver said that inconsistent results after his first win in Germany brought his and his team-mate Sebastien Vettel's championship bids to an end.
"I am disappointed that my championship bid faded, but as always you need to put a whole season together," said Webber.
"We had a non-points scoring finish in Melbourne and a couple of ninth-place finishes in Valencia and Spa, where we got a drive-through penalty.
"Lots of little things turn into big things and that is how you lose a championship.
"It was the same for my team-mate Sebastian Vettel. He had a few crashes here and there and the odd failure. That is enough for us not to be in the hunt."
Webber continued to say that he is keen to not let the opportunity to become champion in 2010 pass him by after learning some lessons from this season.
"The biggest lesson I have learnt from this season is you need to cut out the little things," he said.
"You need to make each session count and really put it together across the season.
"OK I am not 21, but I am not 40 either, so all of this will help me going forward into next year."