MotoGP
Mark Webber: "I’m full of admiration for what the MotoGP guys do"
The F1 Grand Prix winner and World Endurance champion on his passion for bike racing and why this year’s season is shaping up to be a thriller.
I’ve always loved motorcycles. I grew up in pretty rural area in Australia and my father had a Yamaha dealership. He had a lot of customers who were mostly farmers interested in quad bikes for looking after cattle or sheep but there was also a motocross track close by where Casey Stoner and some of the Australian guys rode. Valentino Rossi’s mechanic, Alex Briggs, rode there. That opened up that side of the business.
For me, mucking about around the workshop was natural and at the weekend we’d go to the farm and ride bikes. When I was 13, I moved to karts and it was all four wheels after that. But still, I’ve always loved two wheels. My heroes growing up were Eddie Lawson and Wayne Rainey, Kevin Schwantz, Mick Doohan, and of course the 1987 world champion Wayne Gardner. My first memory of going to a race was breaking into the pit lane at Eastern Creek in ’90 or ’91 to watch Loris Capirossi on the 125. I’ve still got a photo of Loris and I and in it I’m already taller than him. I think I was about 14!
I love the freedom of bikes; I love the independence. You feel connected to the elements
I’ve been lucky enough to ride some street bikes on track including at Queensland Raceway with Troy Bayliss, I’ve done some enduro riding and played around on dirt bikes. Now I love my adventure riding.
I love the freedom of bikes; I love the independence. You feel connected to the elements. You soak it all up and time flies. A big challenge for F1 drivers when they ride bikes at tracks is that we’re hard wired to brake a lot later, because of all the downforce and grip you have with a Formula car. Adjusting to such a small contact patch and hardly any aerodynamics on a bike is really difficult. I’m full of admiration for what these guys do. From Mike Hailwood, Giacomo Agostini and Barry Sheene to Mick Doohan. What Mick went through was extraordinary. To be beaten up that hard, that often, to ride despite all the hurt and to do it again and again is amazing.
Marc has snookered Honda by being a total magician
You could say there’s an element of masochism in it, but he just wanted to win. Same with the current guys. I have a tremendous amount of admiration for all of them. Marc’s accident has thrown the cat among the pigeons this year. He’ll still be the guy to beat when he comes back and it’s not like he was struggling for pace. Clearly that thing is brutal to ride, so can Honda overcome any shortcomings his crash might expose?
You have to say that in many ways he’s snookered Honda by being a total magician. Who else is going to jump on that thing and have the same level of control? But however superhuman he is, this season is still a huge challenge. It’s an aggressive schedule, so you have to wonder how taking the time out he needs will affect his chances. It looks almost impossible for him.
Fabio Quartararo looks super dialled-in, Yamaha have got a bit going on and with Ducati not firing yet, is there a chance for Valentino to take it? That would be spectacular. It’s a really interesting campaign and any of those guys could win it. It’s incredibly dynamic and I’m thoroughly looking forward to seeing how it unfolds.
These days, Mark Webber is an F1 pundit and motorbike fan. Most recently, he was out riding with TT legend John McGuinness.