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[h=2]WEC: Webber to retire at the end of 2016[/h]RACER Staff







Former Red Bull and Williams Formula 1 driver and reigning World Endurance champion Mark Webber will retire from professional motorsport at the end of his current Porsche LMP1 campaign.
The Australian's last race will be the 2016 WEC finale at Bahrain on November 19, and he will stay on with Porsche as a "special representative".


Webber got his F1 break in 2002 with Minardi, scoring points on debut on home soil, and raced with Jaguar and Williams before joining Red Bull in '07. It was with Red Bull that he enjoyed his most-successful stint in grand prix racing, taking nine victories and finishing third in the world championship on three occasions before leaving at the end of the 2013 season.
Since joining Porsche's then-new LMP1 programme in 2014, Webber has won seven WEC rounds with Timo Bernhard and Brendon Hartley, and the trio won last year's drivers' title, along with finishing second in the Le Mans 24 Hours.
"I have arrived where I belong," Webber said. "Porsche is the brand I always loved most and the one that suits me the best. I will miss the sheer speed, downforce and competition, but I want to leave on a high and I'm very much looking forward to my new tasks.

"It was a big change from Formula 1 to LMP1 and an entirely new experience. But it came at the right time for me. I found I liked sharing a car and the chemistry between Timo, Brendon and me is special and something I'll always remember.
"It will be strange getting into the race car for the very last time in Bahrain but for now I will thoroughly enjoy every moment of the remaining races."
Webber, Bernhard and Hartley are fourth in the WEC standings entering this weekend's Fuji race, the third-last of the season.

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[h=2]WEC: Webber looks to retirement as title rivals prep for Bahrain climax[/h] Monday, 14 November 2016


RACER staff
Mark Webber says he is looking forward to the end of his career as a racing driver after this weekend's Bahrain World Endurance Championship finale.


The 40-year-old Australian announced his retirement from the cockpit last month, bringing an end to a career that included nine Formula 1 grand prix victories with Red Bull and the LMP1 world championship with Porsche during his three-year post-F1 stint with the German manufacturer.



"We would love to go out with a victory, but irrespective of the result, it would be nice for me to have a smooth day and look back on a very, very long career of which I'm very proud," said Webber. "I will walk away from the car just one more time – take the helmet and balaclava off and the ear plugs out, doing all these things for one last time. That will be very different, but I'm looking forward to not having to do this in the future."
Webber added that he is prepared for the "big moment" of retirement to make for an emotional final weekend.
"Bahrain is obviously not a normal race for me, it will be pretty emotional," he said. "To arrive there knowing it is the last time I will compete seriously will be a big moment. I'm looking forward to the weekend.
"I've got a lot of friends coming from all around the world, especially from Australia and Europe, to watch me drive for the last time."