Yesterday Red Bull announced that they have extended triple world champion Sebastian Vettel's contract until the end of the 2015 season. Whilst this is great for the German it does surface the question of if Mark Webber leaves then who will be his replacement? It is a widespread rumour that the Aussie will be moving to the World Endurance Championship driving for Porsche next season and whilst Webber has not 100% confirmed or denied this rumour, the events of the 2013 season thus far are certainly hinting at a departure from the sport.
So what happens to Red Bull if Webber leaves? The answer is simple, they need to find a replacement who will deliver the same if not better performances and someone who could be a long term number 2 driver to support Sebastian. Below I have listed my top 5 picks for the seat if Mark were to leave and the reasons why.
5.) Nico Hulkenberg:
The German Sauber driver has turned a lot of heads over the past couple of seasons. With a career highest of fourth position and a pole in Brazil 2010, Nico has proved that he has potential. His 2013 season however is not as successful thus far. Picking up just 5 points from the opening 7 rounds (however that's all of the points Sauber have scored this year) If Hulkenberg wants to be considered for the Red Bull seat next season and doesn't quite have the car for consistent points finishes, what he needs to do is attack and show the world that despite the car not being as competitive as it has been in previous years, he can still fight for the lower points and have some exciting battles on the circuit. But with his talent and what he have already seen from him, I
wouldn't write him off just yet.
4.) Paul Di Resta
Since his debut in 2011, Paul Di Resta has continued to improve and impress as his career goes on. 34 points this season alone out of the teams total of 51 and a season best of fourth in Bahrain, Di Resta again is looking very strong in a Force India. The ever competitive midfield in Formula One is where you can expect to see the Scotsman at his best, with a driving style that combines aggression with calmness he has a mature mindset and coming from DTM, it's easy to see how the skills needed to run bumper to bumper and be cool calm and collected when in group racing have transpired into F1.
3.) Kimi Raikkonen
Having won the opening round of the season, the Iceman was out to win a championship and he had made that point crystal clear looking at his race results. Three second places in a row saw him move up to second in the championship whilst teammate Grosjean struggled to get the consistency needed to support Kimi and aid Lotus's Constructors bid, much like Alonso and Piquet JR partnership at Renault a few years back. But the key here is that over the past two seasons Kimi has been with Lotus, he has taken 11 podiums and 2 victories. The only issue here is that I don't think the partnership would work. It would mirror the Alonso and Hamilton McLaren partnership in 2007, two drivers who want the spotlight with the team backing their "Golden Boy". This could even be the case at Red Bull now following the Multi 21 incident and the numerous other encounters the two teammates have had in the past. As good as Raikkonen would be in a Red Bull, I just feel that he is too dominant to be a number 2 driver, team orders can make or break a drivers championship and if Raikkonen had to yield to allow Vettel to pick up some crucial points for the championship ending his own, would he?
2.) Daniel Ricciardo & John-Eric Vergne
Yes that's right I've chosen two drivers for number two. Toro Rosso was the proving ground for Sebastian Vettel in 2008. He took his first victory for the Red Bull sister team at Monza that year and now he's a triple world champion. No other driver however has been able to achieve the same feat or indeed anywhere close. Sebastian Bourdais and Jaimie Algesuari are just a couple of names to mention. But Daniel Ricciardo looks like he could be the man to change that. However in doing so, he needs to out qualify and finish better than his team mate Vergne who has been on a great tun lately. Red Bull boss Christian Horner has said "Daniel is a very, very talented driver. He has come from the Red Bull junior programme and has done a great job. We have an eye on him. "We're also looking at what Jean-Eric Vergne is doing, and it's nice to see the progress they're making." Vergne picked up a fantastic result this weekend at Canada finishing in a career best of 6th position. The Toro Rosso pair are alternating who is quicker almost every race now and it will be very interesting to see if Red Bull choose Daniel or John for the 2014 seat.
1.) Nico Rosberg
Three pole positions and a victory are the way Nico Rosberg has started the opening half of his season. Alongside his new teammate Lewis Hamilton who is signed at Mercedes until 2016, Rosberg has been on fire as of late. His learning curve over the past five years or so has been great to watch as his totals now add up to two race wins and four pole positions with the potential for many more. Often considered the nice guy of Formula One, the 28 year old in my eyes would be the perfect replacement for Webber. Still relatively young, quick, consistent and smart. He does not often go for moves unless he knows 100% that they will pay off. He respects team orders (Malaysia this year is a good example however he made his feelings clear to the team) and works very well as a second driver.
Only time will tell who Christian chooses as his new number two driver but there is a lot of speculation circling at the moment, the next few races in particular will perhaps make things a little clearer but we need to wait until the end of the season for a more realistic idea of who the driver could be.
Who would you choose if you were in Horners position? Leave your thoughts in the comments below or tweet them to me @LiamJSimRacing
5.) Nico Hulkenberg:
The German Sauber driver has turned a lot of heads over the past couple of seasons. With a career highest of fourth position and a pole in Brazil 2010, Nico has proved that he has potential. His 2013 season however is not as successful thus far. Picking up just 5 points from the opening 7 rounds (however that's all of the points Sauber have scored this year) If Hulkenberg wants to be considered for the Red Bull seat next season and doesn't quite have the car for consistent points finishes, what he needs to do is attack and show the world that despite the car not being as competitive as it has been in previous years, he can still fight for the lower points and have some exciting battles on the circuit. But with his talent and what he have already seen from him, I
wouldn't write him off just yet.
4.) Paul Di Resta
Since his debut in 2011, Paul Di Resta has continued to improve and impress as his career goes on. 34 points this season alone out of the teams total of 51 and a season best of fourth in Bahrain, Di Resta again is looking very strong in a Force India. The ever competitive midfield in Formula One is where you can expect to see the Scotsman at his best, with a driving style that combines aggression with calmness he has a mature mindset and coming from DTM, it's easy to see how the skills needed to run bumper to bumper and be cool calm and collected when in group racing have transpired into F1.
3.) Kimi Raikkonen
Having won the opening round of the season, the Iceman was out to win a championship and he had made that point crystal clear looking at his race results. Three second places in a row saw him move up to second in the championship whilst teammate Grosjean struggled to get the consistency needed to support Kimi and aid Lotus's Constructors bid, much like Alonso and Piquet JR partnership at Renault a few years back. But the key here is that over the past two seasons Kimi has been with Lotus, he has taken 11 podiums and 2 victories. The only issue here is that I don't think the partnership would work. It would mirror the Alonso and Hamilton McLaren partnership in 2007, two drivers who want the spotlight with the team backing their "Golden Boy". This could even be the case at Red Bull now following the Multi 21 incident and the numerous other encounters the two teammates have had in the past. As good as Raikkonen would be in a Red Bull, I just feel that he is too dominant to be a number 2 driver, team orders can make or break a drivers championship and if Raikkonen had to yield to allow Vettel to pick up some crucial points for the championship ending his own, would he?2.) Daniel Ricciardo & John-Eric Vergne
Yes that's right I've chosen two drivers for number two. Toro Rosso was the proving ground for Sebastian Vettel in 2008. He took his first victory for the Red Bull sister team at Monza that year and now he's a triple world champion. No other driver however has been able to achieve the same feat or indeed anywhere close. Sebastian Bourdais and Jaimie Algesuari are just a couple of names to mention. But Daniel Ricciardo looks like he could be the man to change that. However in doing so, he needs to out qualify and finish better than his team mate Vergne who has been on a great tun lately. Red Bull boss Christian Horner has said "Daniel is a very, very talented driver. He has come from the Red Bull junior programme and has done a great job. We have an eye on him. "We're also looking at what Jean-Eric Vergne is doing, and it's nice to see the progress they're making." Vergne picked up a fantastic result this weekend at Canada finishing in a career best of 6th position. The Toro Rosso pair are alternating who is quicker almost every race now and it will be very interesting to see if Red Bull choose Daniel or John for the 2014 seat. 1.) Nico Rosberg
Three pole positions and a victory are the way Nico Rosberg has started the opening half of his season. Alongside his new teammate Lewis Hamilton who is signed at Mercedes until 2016, Rosberg has been on fire as of late. His learning curve over the past five years or so has been great to watch as his totals now add up to two race wins and four pole positions with the potential for many more. Often considered the nice guy of Formula One, the 28 year old in my eyes would be the perfect replacement for Webber. Still relatively young, quick, consistent and smart. He does not often go for moves unless he knows 100% that they will pay off. He respects team orders (Malaysia this year is a good example however he made his feelings clear to the team) and works very well as a second driver.
Only time will tell who Christian chooses as his new number two driver but there is a lot of speculation circling at the moment, the next few races in particular will perhaps make things a little clearer but we need to wait until the end of the season for a more realistic idea of who the driver could be.
Who would you choose if you were in Horners position? Leave your thoughts in the comments below or tweet them to me @LiamJSimRacing
