‘Webber to drive RB8 first’

Mark Webber will debut Red Bull’s new challenger on the opening day of the first pre-season test in Jerez, according to a report…

Mark Webber will debut Red Bull’s new challenger on the opening day of the first pre-season test in Jerez, according to a report.

Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport claims the Australian will be behind the wheel of the RB8 on February 7 and 8 with team-mate Sebastian Vettel taking over for the final two days.

The report adds that World Champion Vettel gets the first two days “off” so that he doesn’t have to deal with any teething problems.

McLaren, Ferrari and Sauber are the other teams who have confirmed that their new cars will debut in the south of Spain in early February.

Mercedes, meanwhile, have revealed that they will skip the Jerez test entirely and will unveil their new car ahead of the the second pre-season test at Barcelona.