Aussie Grit
Page 33
Sometimes it was murder trying to keep everyone else happy as well. Over the years, I was able to give other well-known sportspeople a glimpse of my life inside the F1 paddock and the intensity of the garage in the countdown to the race. Lleyton Hewitt, Michael Carrick, Fabien Barthez, Jason Crump, Ronnie O’Sullivan, Layne Beachley, Kevin Pietersen, Freddie Flintoff and numerous Australian cricketers and Rugby League players came to Grands Prix. They were always incredibly sensitive to my race preparations and cautious about invading my personal space, because they are only too familiar with the process themselves. What blew them away every single time was how visible and accessible the drivers are to everyone in the F1 paddock – I know it’s something Bernie has always encouraged – and how we had to run the gauntlet every time we stepped out of our inner sanctum in the team’s hospitality area to cross the paddock to the garages.
Sometimes, particularly at Monaco, where you walk among the public alongside the harbour to get to and from the pits, the drivers simply chose to stay in the garages or the engineer’s room. What also blew my F1 guests away were the chaotic scenes on the grid with all the hangers-on, TV interviews moments before stepping into the car, and all the distractions we had to manage. I don’t think there’s any other sport where the participants are so much in the spotlight minutes before they get down to competitive business.
The team would always receive requests for TV interviews on the grid and I would generally say yes if it was someone like Martin Brundle or DC, as they’ve been there themselves and know what to ask, but the majority would be declined. Bernie and his entourage would always bring VIP guests onto the grid and introduce them to the drivers, but while we might smile and go through the motions, in reality we were a million miles away in our own little world.
The real world, the world I come from, is light years removed from all that. For all the travelling she has done to watch me race, for example, Mum is still happiest in her home environment in Queanbeyan. She likes nothing better than fussing over her loved ones and the family is her life, especially Leanne, Dean and their three children, who live locally. Mum enjoys coming over to Europe to see me but it’s taken her a while to adjust to international travel and experiencing different cultures.
I know Mum trusted me when I was racing but she struggled to trust some of the other guys I was racing against. I think she was torn: knowing that I was so passionate and driven about my racing, something that had been on my mind since I was 14, she was undoubtedly proud of my focus towards it, but she didn’t like the associated risks. I was quite insensitive to Mum’s feelings about racing, in fact I never really thought about my family in terms of my risk-taking decisions in that environment. I was selfishly driven and arrogant in that sense but in my late thirties I became more attuned to how concerned Mum was by what I did for a living.
As for Dad, he has always been with me in spirit, and more often than not he’s been right there beside me at the crucial turning-points in my career. He became a familiar and I believe a very popular figure in F1 paddocks around the world; to me it was always so reassuring to know he was around. He knew better than most what it had taken to get me there. His love of sport set me off on my own journey in life; the values he and Mum taught me stood me in good stead every step of the way. Being able to fly Dad up over the Australian coastline in a helicopter is certainly worth a couple of Grand Prix wins to me.
Nowadays my relationship with Leanne is the closest it’s ever been. It’s easier now I’m not in F1 because I’m not so distracted and can make the time for her and her family. While I was in F1, I may have been there physically but mentally I was still focusing on racing. I’ve always got on with my brother-in-law Dean and it’s been great seeing their three kids developing their own interests and hobbies and starting to figure out what they want to do in life. It’s terrific coming back to Australia for a break, but to come back and live is not a priority at the moment: we’ll be juggling our time for a while to come.
I hope all those who have been a part of what we fondly call ‘Team Webber’ will also understand how much their support has meant along the way. I have been privileged to have good, solid people in my life, people I can trust, people who have put in the extra miles for me, people who will share the good times and the bad. Geoff Donohue down in Australia … Kerry Fenwick who once told Ann she needed her as her PA and has been with us ever since … I have drawn strength and inspiration from all of them.
In my private life my dogs Simba and Shadow have been, without exaggeration, a huge feature of my life. They keep me grounded: they don’t care if I’ve just won Monaco or had the worst day in a cockpit I can ever remember, they just want me to stop messing about and take them out for a run. Their companionship is one of the central features of my life.
And of course Luke is like a younger brother to me. He was only a little tacker when we met. Sport brought Luke and me closer over time: he may be very academic but he’s also very knowledgeable on the sporting front. He’s a handy tennis player and a good runner. As he’s got older we’ve been able to do more together and I’ve taken him to some big events like soccer matches at Old Trafford, one-day matches and Tests, Wimbledon and plenty of Grands Prix.
It would be wrong if I were to finish with any other name but Ann’s. I don’t much like saying ‘Told you so’, but I was right. Twenty years ago when I met her for the first time I said she must be somebody pretty important. Only she and I know just how important she has been in my life, and the focus, the discipline, the belief she invested in my career.
Together we started the fire and together we have come a long way.
Could we have done some things better? Probably.
Could we have made different decisions? Certainly.
Could we have tried harder to get where we wanted to be? No way.
There was no manual for what we were attempting to do. We used the skills we each had and then made it up as we went along, at least in the early days. Ann is a workaholic who seems to survive on no sleep. She is the most fiercely loyal person I have ever known; she has been unfailingly protective of me and what she sees as my best interests. She is the single most important presence in my life and my best friend. We have complete trust in one another; we are so finely attuned that we each instinctively know what the other is thinking. Ann has always kept me honest: with people like her to help, you don’t have to work hard at being yourself.
‘How the f#*k are you going to get to Formula 1 coming from Queanbeyan?’ Together we faced that question so many times; together we answered it. F1 was a pinnacle for me. As I said when I rode up L’Alpe d’Huez with Alain Prost, who was such an inspiration to me, I have always liked ascending.
It’s phenomenal to turn around, look back and see where you’ve come from.
Acknowledgements
Writing an autobiography is no five-minute job and mine has been a mammoth effort by those on the frontline, on and off over the past decade and more. First and foremost, my sincere thanks to my ghostwriter, Stuart Sykes, whose attention to detail has been impeccable. Stuart painstakingly trawled the archives and researched diligently to unearth family history I didn’t even know about; he came up with every stat there was to know about my racing career, many of which I’d long forgotten. His biggest challenge of all, though, was deciphering what became known in the process of writing this book as ‘Webberisms’ for general reading consumption!
Stuart’s work would surely have been even more laborious had it not been for the efforts of Chris Lambden, who started the task many years ago, when the idea of a book was first floated, with hours upon hours of early interviews. Odd as it may seem now, the idea back then was for the book to conclude after my F1 debut at Melbourne in 2002. Happily F1 continued to dominate my life for a further 11 years and a lot more water has flowed under the bridge during that time.
My thanks and admiration to my partner, Ann, for her unwavering commitment to the book, which has consumed a large par
t of her life over the past two years, and to her son Luke, who was always available to cast an educated eye over numerous drafts and help with the editing process.
Last but not least, thank you to Pan Macmillan, in particular Angus Fontaine and Samantha Sainsbury, for believing I had a worthwhile story to tell. Their patience, guidance and gentle persuasion in encouraging me to share the world I was part of with a wider audience was challenging at times. But I’m thankful to Pan Macmillan for allowing the final decisions to rest with me and I hope between us we’ve struck a happy balance for the reader.
Of course my career, and therefore my story, would not have been possible without all those people who provided inspiration, support, guidance, insight and friendship. It would take up too many pages to acknowledge them individually, so I hope they will forgive me if I provide an alphabetical list. Each of them knows what their backing meant to me along the way: Valerie Aguer, Arai Helmets, Arlene Bansal, Layne Beachley, the Brabham family, Flavio Briatore, Bob Butler, David Campese, John Cavill, the Christensen family, Roger Cleary, Rich Connor, Bob Copp, Morris Denton and family, Alan Docking, Geoff Donohue, Mick Doohan, Kerry Fenwick, Michael Foreman, David Furner, Harry Galloway, Don and Sue Gatherer, Judith Griggs, David Hahn, John Harnden, Nick Harris, Wolfgang Hatz, Norbert Haug, Bob and Nancy Johnson (and thanks for the cool front-cover shot, Nancy!), and Peter Larner,
Andy Lawson, Spencer Martin, Dietrich Mateschitz, Rod McLean, Dan McPherson, Gordon Message, Bruno Michel, David Moffatt, Chris Morris and family, Adrian Newey, Trevor O’Hoy, Tim and Debbie Parker, Barbara Proske, Dick Puxty, Mike and Pam Reese, Bernd Schneider, Rick Scully, Bernie Shrosbree, Eva Sobonova, Simon Sostaric, Sir Jackie and Lady Stewart and family, Paul Stoddart, Chris Styring, Simon Taylor, Gerhard Ungar, Ron Walker and Danny Wallis.
My sincere thanks to all of them – and to you – for sharing my journey.
Index
Abu Dhabi 260, 304–9, 320, 327, 339, 341
Adams, Leigh 191
Alan Docking Racing 59, 65
Albers, Christijan 187
Alesi, Jean 127, 364
Alguersuari, Jaime 305
Alonso, Fernando 144–5, 149, 163, 167, 179, 181, 183, 190, 193–7, 206, 209, 216, 219, 230, 232, 243, 257, 285, 293–305, 308, 313, 315–19, 324–8, 337–9, 341, 357, 366–7, 371
Amaroo Park 36, 41
AMD 184
AMG Mercedes see Mercedes-Benz/AMG Mercedes
Amon, Chris 255
Arden 207, 227
Armstrong, Lance 141–2, 175, 224–5, 362, 372
Arrows
F1 122, 124–6, 128–9, 163
F3000 128
Aston Clinton, Buckinghamshire 175, 215–16, 291
athletics 17
Audi 351
Aufrecht, Hans-Werner 86
Aussie rules 17
Australian cricket team 257
Australian Grand Prix, Adelaide 25, 34–5, 50–1, 134, 197, 243
Australian Grand Prix, Melbourne 19, 38, 51, 67, 93–4, 148–56, 165, 181, 213, 227, 241–3, 332, 334
first F1 race 148–56
Formula Holden 51–2
sports-car/FIA GT demonstration 83–4
Austria, A1-Ring 69–72, 90–1, 179, 314–15
renamed Red Bull Ring 315
Autosport magazine 203, 309
Aylesbury 58–9, 78–9, 82, 94, 96, 100
Bahrain 174, 181–2, 199, 205, 213, 224, 246–7, 322, 341, 352
BAR (British American Racing) 92, 131
Barcelona see Spain
Barrett, Luke 38–40, 47, 59, 94, 96, 100, 132, 257, 353–6, 360, 377
Barrett, Rod 37–9
Barrichello, Rubens 65, 150, 157, 166, 179, 242, 250, 252, 253, 259, 272, 299, 320, 357
Barthez, Fabien 374
Bathurst 40, 43, 125
Baumgartner, Felix 341
Bayliss, Troy 224, 257
BBC column 194, 223
Beachley, Layne 374
Belgium, Spa-Francorchamps 60, 141, 143, 193, 217–18, 228, 296–7, 313, 317–19, 326, 337, 349, 350
Benetton F1 6, 51, 69, 126, 130–7, 139, 144–5, 163, 167, 179, 181, 190, 193–5, 197, 242
2001 test and reserve driver 133, 135, 137, 139–45
B201 143
Renault see Renault
Renault 111-degree engine 143
Benetton, Luciano 134
Bennett, Wayne 173
Benteyn, Pierre-Emeric 224, 236–7
Beretta, Olivier 109
Berger, Gerhard 4, 17, 68, 134, 207
Bernhard, Timo 346, 349, 351, 353, 354
Bianchi, Jules 245
bicycle riding see cycling
Biela, Franck 105, 109
Bigois, Loïc 180, 191–2
Black Saturday 241
Blewitt, David George ‘DG’ 17–19, 27
Blewitt, Diane see Webber, Diane
Blewitt, Marie 17
BMW
BMW Sauber 213–14, 216, 219, 223, 226, 242
engines 104, 185, 193, 199
Formula BMW 214
M5 161
Bouchut, Christophe 87, 102
Bourdais, Sébastien 228
Boutsen, Thierry 104, 116, 294
Brabham, David 357
Brabham, Geoff 52
Brabham, Lady 274
Brabham, Sir Jack 24–5, 27, 52, 70, 247, 256, 257, 268, 270, 272, 274, 326, 330, 339, 359, 360, 371–2
Bracks, Steve 148
Bradman, Sir Donald 17, 268
Brands Hatch 37–8, 47, 53, 55–7, 60–2, 65–6
Brawn GP 242, 246, 250, 252, 261
Brawn, Ross 126, 242, 266–7
Brazil 10, 139, 165–7, 179–80, 199, 220, 232–3, 258–60, 288, 301–4, 320, 327–8, 339–41, 353–7, 362, 367
Brennan, Niall 200–1
Briatore, Flavio 130, 133–8, 140, 142, 144, 146–7, 159, 162, 179, 206, 230–2, 255, 284, 302, 324
Bridge Motors 16, 18, 28, 30
Bridgestone 82, 87, 165, 181, 186–8, 199, 209
Bright, Jason 44–5
British Grand Prix see United Kingdom
British motor-racing industry 47–8
Brundle, Martin 26, 52, 88, 104, 109, 126, 333, 337, 375
Budweiser 193
Buemi, Sébastien 246
Button, Jenson 4, 12, 39, 143–4, 177, 242, 246–7, 252, 253, 257, 260–1, 297–8, 304, 308, 337, 366–7, 371
Button, John 39, 367
Cadwell Park 38
Campbell, Naomi 135
Campese, David 66–7, 72, 74, 363
Campese Management 94
Canada 183, 214, 226, 275, 285–7, 324, 367
Canberra Raiders 21, 29
Carmichael, Chris 184
Carrick, Michael 357, 374
cars (personal) 22–4, 55, 57, 66, 79, 86, 98, 161
Chandhok, Karun 273
Channel 9 25, 64
China 175, 181, 245–6, 313, 322, 334, 352
Christensen, Jackie 133
Christensen, Val 133
Circuit de la Sarthe see Le Mans (La Sarthe)
Clarkson, Tom 144
Cleary, Roger 218, 229, 237–8, 240, 254, 369
Clooney, George 175
cockpit 3–10
Collier, Mikey 367
commentating 64
Computershare sponsorship 132
Constructors’ Championship 156, 222, 259, 297, 304, 308, 327, 338
Copp, Bob 42–3, 64, 74, 94, 115–16
Corio, Geelong 31
Cosworth 164, 181, 199, 209
Coulthard, David 156, 166, 181, 188, 210–11, 213, 216, 218, 223, 226–8, 230, 233, 357, 366, 371
Crampton, Dean 375, 376
Crampton, Leanne 16, 19–20, 90, 106, 148, 221, 330, 375, 376
crashes
Brazil 2003 167
Brazil 2014 353–7
Formula 3000 139–41
Formula Ford 34–5, 45
Fuji 219–20
Mercedes at Le Man
s 103, 105–17, 288
Saarbrücken motorway 79–81
Turkey, Red Bull 224
Valencia F1 288–9
Whitchurch roundabout 86
‘Crashgate’ scandal 134, 230–2, 341
Cressoni, Matteo 353
Croatia 201–2
Croft 68
Crump, Jason 191, 212, 255, 259, 265, 291, 339, 357, 374
Crump, Mel 339
cycling 144–5, 175, 184–5, 201, 212, 224–5, 234–6, 372
accidents 234–40, 299, 310
John O’Groats to Land’s End 144–5
Tour de France 320–1, 378
Dallara Formula 3 car 65
Damon, Matt 175
Davidson, Anthony 223
de Ferran, Gil 357
De la Rosa, Pedro 159–60, 292
Dennis, Ron 209
Denton, Morris 184, 224–5, 372
di Montezemolo, Luca 342
Dijon 89–90
DNF (did not finish) 60, 128, 140, 165, 213–14, 322
Docking, Alan 57, 59, 65–7, 72, 75, 86, 94
Alan Docking Racing 59, 65
dogs 215–16, 221–2, 228, 326, 377
Domenicali, Stefano 324
Donington Park 65, 123
Donnelly, Martin 63
Donoghue, Geoff 339, 377
Doohan, Mick 58, 70, 359, 360
Doyle, Mick 21
Drag Reduction System (DRS) 311, 319
driver instructor 42, 55–6
drivers licence 22
Duke, Ran 30
Duke, Ryan 30
Dumbreck, Peter 73, 102, 114–16
Dumbrell, Paul 123
Duval, Loïc 351
Dyer, Chris 126