Slater: Webber is faster than you

ESPNSTAR.com columnist Steve Slater tackles the hottest topic in Formula One at the moment - Red Bull's 'team orders'.

By Steve Slater
Fernando Alonso and Ferrari have scored their first Grand Prix victory of the 2011 season at Silverstone, but it was the late-race challenge from Mark Webber on Red Bull team-mate Sebastian Vettel which has been the post-race talking point. Or rather, the absence of a challenge.
The radio message from team boss Christian Horner to Webber "Hold your position", could become just as infamous as Ferrari engineer Rob Smedley's "Fernando is faster than you" call to Felipe Massa at last year's German Grand Prix.
There are though, subtle differences. In Germany the Ferrari team cynically manipulated the result of the race merely to allow Alonso to score more championship points. Massa was the race leader and the message from the pits was a blatant instruction to move over and allow his team mate to take victory.
At Silverstone last weekend Vettel had headed Webber for every lap of the race since snatching the lead at the race start. It cannot be denied that Webber drove superbly and had managed his tyres more carefully into the closing stages of the race.
However with Alonso too far ahead to be caught and both Red Bulls on target for the remaining podium places, it was a logical step to ask the two drivers to hold their position. Had there been a Turkey 2010-style clash between the two drivers, I am sure the Red Bull team would have been roundly criticised for their indiscipline.
Certainly though it was a rotten piece of PR for Red Bull, who stand accused of robbing us of a late race spectacle. Formula One, Christian Horner needs to be reminded, is still a sport.
It won't have helped the relationships in the Red Bull Racing team either. It is clear that Mark Webber feels that his talents are undervalued in a team which is now aligned solidly behind their German protégé. You simply could never imagine the message, ever, coming from the pit wall, "Webber is faster than you".
Webber's current Red Bull contract finishes at the end of the season. He is reported to have a one-year contract on the table for 2012, but I suspect it is on the kitchen table of Webber's Buckinghamshire farmhouse, probably buried under electricity and telephone bills. Mark certainly doesn't seem to be too keen to sign it just yet.
The problem for Webber is that if he doesn't re-sign with Red Bull, where does he go next? In terms of equipment, every other team is inferior.
Some rumours have linked Webber to a driver swap with Ferrari's Felipe Massa. Intriguing, but Webber would inevitably find himself number two to Fernando Alonso, who Schumacher-like has moulded the team around him.
Massa certainly needs a move away from Maranello to reignite his self-belief, which has been dimmed as Alonso took charge. However if any such change were due, I might expect it to be back to the Ferrari-powered Sauber team where Massa started his F1 career.
In exchange, Maranello would pay Sauber to take on Kamui Kobayashi. The best driver yet from Japan and top rookie of recent years, he would be the ideal ‘apprentice' to master craftsman Alonso.
Paul di Resta, despite a pitlane bungle at Silverstone has reaffirmed his commitment to the Force India team. In a couple of years, I guess when Michael Schumacher steps aside di Resta will be his natural replacement at the Petronas Mercedes team, but in the meantime with Adrian Sutil under pressure, who would the Scot's team-mate be at Force India next year?
Could it be Webber? It is in some ways a big step back for the Aussie, but he would bring just the sort of experience Force India needs to move forward and his salary could be a worthwhile investment for Vijay Mallya. It is an intriguing, if distant prospect, but could be a rumour worth remembering!