Webber will always play second fiddle: Burning rubber

Mark Webber, last season's Formula One championship struggler, has hinted that he will have a serious tilt at the title this time around, saying with ominous intent: "I've got some unfinished business."

With Red Bull team owner Dietrich Mateschitz insisting the Australian veteran will have equal status with his partner Sebastian Vettel, the young genius and double champion, Webber's hopes must be on a high.

But if you, I and Webber are naive enough to believe Mateschitz's declaration, we'll believe anything. Recent history has proved Red Bull's preference is for their 24-year-old wonderboy and the last two seasons have been peppered with the evidence of Webber cast very much as the understudy to the German driver's starring role.

Common sense screams out that nothing will change and if it did then Vettel would be up the road to Ferrari quicker than you can say "Prancing Horse" or "Twenty million pounds". It is pretty obvious that this will be 36-year-old Webber's last chance for championship domination — his contract runs out at the season's close and, with a queue of brilliant newcomers jostling for his seat, it is highly unlikely he will remain on the retained list.

Red Bull's hierarchy and their backroom boys, too, know that even if he reaches his best form Webber will still be no match for the gifted Vettel. And to declare he will have equal status is a psychological sop to him and a device to hopefully trigger him to defend the space behind the team leader in the championship chase.

There are few, if any, nicer and more honestly dedicated and trustworthy guys in grand prix racing than Webber, but I can't accept that even he believes he can clinch the crown in what looks like his exit year when eager talents like Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso are in the hunt.

"Both Sebastian and Mark will get the same equipment," stresses Mateschitz. Maybe so. Whether they will enjoy equal treatment in the garage is open to question. And if there is a crucial piece of equipment available to only one car, can we really believe it will be fitted to Webber's? No way.

Webber, a winner seven times, admits what we all know, that he had a disastrous last season, but he says: "I've got some unfinished business. I don't think you are ‘owed' anything in this business, you've got to go out there and get on with it. I've been fortunate in many situations and I see myself still like that. I love the chance to test myself at this level. And that's just what I'll be doing."

Maybe so. But he is deluding himself, and so are we all, if he thinks Red Bull are going to bless him and not Vettel as their preference for a third successive title.

The author is an expert on motorsport based in England