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Mark Webber on Formula 1's new reality, Silverstone steering through Covid and his favourite timepieces

Mark Webber and Jackie Stewart - Rolex/James Moy
Mark Webber and Jackie Stewart - Rolex/James Moy

Nobody can deny that the winds of change are blowing through the 2020 Grand Prix season. A different schedule, new tracks, socially-distanced garages and races run behind closed doors. And all of this against a prevailing focus on inclusivity and diversity within one of the world’s richest sports.

With a recognition that there needs to be an active push internally towards “breaking down the stereotypes associated with a career in motorsports”, F1’s CEO Chase Carey has announced a series of programmes with the end goal of creating “a meritocracy that promotes the most talented drivers into F1, regardless of gender or ethnicity.”

Of course, the effects of this will not be visible for some years, but most agree that the statement of intent from the top is a step towards acknowledging and righting a deep-rooted imbalance in a sport currently celebrating its 70th anniversary.

Last week saw an astonishing three-wheeled victory by Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton in the British Grand Prix, the driver’s seventh win at Silverstone, but his first behind closed doors. Now, a week on, Silverstone will host F1’s biggest names one more time for the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix - a one-off race and the fifth round of the rescheduled 2020 World Championship.

Practice Sessions for the Emirates Formula 1 70th Anniversary Grand Prix 2020 - Rolex/James Moy
Practice Sessions for the Emirates Formula 1 70th Anniversary Grand Prix 2020 - Rolex/James Moy

Speaking about the relevance of the venue, Channel 4 commentator and former F1 and World Endurance Championship driver Mark Webber says: “Silverstone is legendary - up there with Lords and Wimbledon. There is no one in the sport - whether driver, mechanic, photographer or writer that doesn’t understand just how special it is. The first Grand Prix was run there in 1950 and the circuit has gone on to symbolise the UK’s dominance in the sport - it became the backyard for innovation within motor-racing, and today most of the top teams have a base within 40 miles of Silverstone.”

For Webber, who was one of the few to have witnessed Hamilton’s first place following the disintegrating tyre incident, the current F1 set up is far from ideal. Although he recognises and welcomes the immense effort that Chase Carey and team have gone to, to get physical racing up and running again, he says that it is impossible to not miss the buzz that comes from a crowd of 100,000-plus.

“Once the race is on, the drivers are so focused that I am not sure they would notice, but my job as a commentator is to bring viewers at home closer to the sport and to add character, which is hard when the only people in the paddock are industry people,” he says.

“You certainly feel the absence of atmosphere, build up and theatre that brings the occasion to life. I stand on the grid at Silverstone with everyone getting ready and, yes, the tension is still there but it is not electric. That said, I am delighted that we have real racing and so proud of what the sport has done to get it up and going again in the safest way possible, in extremely challenging times.”

Austrian GP - Rolex/James Moy
Austrian GP - Rolex/James Moy

As with every business trying to operate in the current climate, loss of revenue is a concern for F1. With meetings cancelled and spectator revenue cut off, Webber says that the continued support of sponsors has become increasingly important at this time, among them F1’s Official Timepiece, Rolex.

The relationship between the watch brand and motorsport stretches back to 1935, when Sir Malcolm Campbell broke the land speed record at Daytona Beach wearing a Rolex Oyster watch.

Today the company is indelibly linked to motorsport from the Daytona International Speedway circuit’s Rolex 24 to Le Mans and F1, as well as partnering numerous heritage meetings around the world, from Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance to Goodwood Revival.

Bluebird 1935 - Bettmann Corbis
Bluebird 1935 - Bettmann Corbis

A Rolex Testimonee (as the brand refers to its ambassadors) since 2017, Webber has worn the company’s watches for more than a decade, having always associated the name with motor racing and with his personal heroes in the sport.

“My father idolised Sir Jackie Stewart and passed this on to me. I remained a fan until I met him in 1997 and we became friends,” he says. “Jackie has been a Rolex wearer all of his adult life. I see the same qualities in the man and the watch – authentic, high standards and completely genuine. Beyond that, Rolex is synonymous with F1 and I have witnessed the association from a very young age. To be connected to a brand that has had such a strong presence in my professional life is wonderful. Both Rolex and F1 are about pioneering precision and excellence.

Mark Webber and GMT Master II - Rolex/Alexandre de Brabant
Mark Webber and GMT Master II - Rolex/Alexandre de Brabant

“Although I wasn’t a watch lover per se, I did always want a Rolex and eventually bought myself a GMT in 2009. It is something that lasts a lifetime and has memories attached to it. I bought watches for my parents, too, the gift of a timepiece is something sentimental, something significant, and that’s the component I love.”

Succumbing to the addictive nature of watches, Webber now has quite a collection, including an Explorer, a Submariner, a Deepsea and a Daytona that has just accompanied him on a between-races staycation motorbiking around Scotland. Could the bike be a substitute for the sport he used to compete it?

Webber and Daytona - Rolex/Thomas Laisné
Webber and Daytona - Rolex/Thomas Laisné

“You are abnormally competitive as a professional athlete,” he admits, “and I do miss being part of a team working towards a goal. It is a feeling that is impossible to replace in normal life. That said, I don’t feel that I want to drive in a Grand Prix today", he says.

"I would be so far off what I should be capable of. To be honest, I love what I do. I always enjoyed having another driver interview me and I feel that I can bring something to the table that someone who has never driven an F1 car might not get.”

And Webber’s stand-out moments of the season so far? “Lewis finishing on three wheels last weekend was crazy and so dramatic – who knows how it would have played out if there had been a crowd there. But, really managing to get the sport going again has to be the achievement of the year. I can’t imagine what hurdles had to be jumped for that to happen.”

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