Webber: Seb needed fresh motivation

Editor

Mark Webber believes both Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull are "better off" with the German leaving the team instead of him becoming stale and lacking motivation.

After winning four consecutive Drivers' Championships, Vettel had a disappointing 2014 campaign and appeared to be just going through the motions midway through the season while Red Bull team principal Christian Horner even claimed that he considered quitting due to the regulation changes.

However, Fernando Alonso's decision to leave Ferrari paved the way for him to join the Maranello squad and his new bosses have already hailed him for the enthusiasm he has shown since joining.

Webber, Vettel's former Red Bull team-mate, feels both parties will benefit as the German "needed fresh motivation and a new change".

"Seb’s not a silly guy and he realised that he needed fresh motivation and a new change and I think the decision was made very early, probably before the season even started to be honest," Webber told the Herald Sun.

"The line is not 'they won't miss Vettel', the line is that when he wants to do something else and be in a different environment, then he is better off going somewhere he might feel he will get more out of himself.

"That's definitely a question for the team halfway through the season, whether they are missing some of that experience."

With Vettel leaving and Daniil Kvyat coming in as his replacement, it leaves Red Bull a bit short of experience with Daniel Ricciardo expected to be the main driver in just his second season with the team.

"Obviously a wealth of knowledge and Daniel's experience is only going to help him," he said.

"They are lacking a little bit of continuity at Red Bull now – there are a few people who have left the team. So that will be interesting to see how technically good the car is over the course of a full season, not just at the start.

"They will be a solid outfit and to match last year will be another good achievement for Daniel. He will want more – he will want to fight for the Championship and Lewis and Nico will be the hardest nuts to crack."