Red Bull’s team principal, Christian Horner, has downplayed rumours that Mark Webber will retire at the end of 2012, making next year his last season in Formula One.
The rumour was sparked after Helmut Marko, advisor to team owner Dietrich Mateschitz, told Australia’s channel One, that Webber would most likely retire next season, meaning the team would need to find a replacement, probably that of Daniel Ricciardo.
“He’s [Webber] probably going to retire [next year],” said the Austrian. “We would need to find one of our juniors who can replace him.”
Horner though has told Sporting Life that the comments were probably ‘lost in translation’, adding that Webber could be in F1 for another two to four years, though he didn’t mention whether that would be with Red Bull, or a competitor.
“I think you’ll find Helmut said ‘possibly’. I think Helmut was probably focusing more on Ricciardo, and these things can obviously get lost in translation.
“Mark could have another two, three or four years in F1. That’s down to him because he is still very competitive, very hungry.”
The Australian is expected to sign a one-year contract extension to remain at the Milton Keynes based outfit alongside teammate Sebastian Vettel.
