Webber has to prove his worth, says Horner - MotorSportsTalk

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner says Mark Webber will remain their driver as long as he “delivers” for the team.

Webber enters his 12th season as an F1 driver this year with his Red Bull contact up for renewal. It’s a familiar situation for him as he has had several one-year extensions on his deal in recent seasons.

“The last three years have apparently been Mark’s last year, and yet he has been retained by the team because of what he is doing in the car,” said Horner.

“There are an awful lot of drivers who would like to be sat in a Red Bull car, but he’s there on merit, and whilst he delivers for the team he will have that place.”

Together with Sebastian Vettel, who joined the team in 2009, Webber and Vettel are the longest-running driver partnership in F1 today:

“We’re very happy with Mark going into what will be his seventh year with the team, the fifth consecutive year he will have been paired with Sebastian,” said Horner.

“Mark has demonstrated that on his day he can be unbeatable, and he does just need to string a campaign together…he’s improved as he’s matured. Last year he drove very well. If we didn’t think he could still do it then we wouldn’t have taken him for another year with the team.”

Red Bull’s junior drivers Jean-Eric Vergne and Daniel Ricciardo, both at Toro Rosso, are among those vying for a chance to drive next year’s RB10. Webber’s contract extension last year came in the wake of his second race win of the year at the British Grand Prix in July.

An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”