Breaking news
Formula 1
Webber: I almost joined Ferrari in 2013
Mark Webber has revealed how close he came to signing with Ferrari for the 2013 Formula 1 season, and says contracts had even been drawn up.
Andrew van Leeuwen
Edited: Jul 1, 2015, 6:25 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
In his recently-released book ‘Aussie Grit’, Webber confirms that he was not only speaking to Ferrari about joining Fernando Alonso there in 2013, but that talks advanced to the point where contracts had been drawn up after a meeting following the 2012 Monaco Grand Prix.
In the end, Webber says the major reason he didn’t sign was because Ferrari would only offer a one-year deal.
“The meeting was with Stefano Domenicali, the Ferrari team principal, on Flavio’s boat in the famous Monaco harbour,” wrote Webber in his book.
“There was now a very real chance I would be joining the Prancing Horse team. Flavio, Stefano, and Fernando all wanted it to happen; contracts were sent but they were for one year plus an option, instead of the two years we were pushing for.
“I just wasn’t interested in switching to another F1 team for 2013 when in July of that season they might tell me my services wouldn’t be required the following year.
“I remember driving to [Silverstone] on the Friday morning and chatting with Fernando on the phone. We swapped a few more calls and although he asked me to wait for a bit longer, my gut was telling me Ferrari wasn’t right for me.”
Hamilton and Red Bull
Webber added that when Red Bull Racing heard he was talking to Ferrari, the team began contract talks with Lewis Hamilton.
“Red Bull Racing were having a bit of fun talking to other drivers too, Lewis in particular, as they had clearly got wind of the Ferrari approach, so there had been no dialogue about extending my contract,” wrote Webber.
“At Silverstone, however, Christian [Horner] suddenly wanted me to sign a new deal for 2013, which we did a few days later.
“It would have been a change of scenery to go to Ferrari: it was also nice to feel a little bit wanted.
“Interestingly Bernie Ecclestone did a U-turn on that prospective Ferrari move: he was against it at the time, but in mid-2013 he asked me if I was comfy with my decision [to leave F1] and said he believed we could still make the Ferrari deal happen for 2014.”
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Book Review: Mark Webber – Aussie Grit
Next article Qatar “close to signing an agreement” for F1 date
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Andrew van Leeuwen
Toby Price explains 'unfortunate' Mitsubishi split
Dakar
Dakar
Dakar
Toby Price explains 'unfortunate' Mitsubishi split
Supercars parity review begins
Supercars
Supercars
Supercars parity review begins
SRO set for bigger Australian GT presence
GT World Challenge Australia
GT World Challenge Australia
SRO set for bigger Australian GT presence
More from
Mark Webber
Oscar Piastri shares how relationship with Mark Webber has evolved since F1 debut
Formula 1
Formula 1
Miami GP
Oscar Piastri shares how relationship with Mark Webber has evolved since F1 debut
Mark Webber’s Oscar Piastri role change was inevitable, says David Coulthard
Formula 1
Formula 1
Saudi Arabian GP
Mark Webber’s Oscar Piastri role change was inevitable, says David Coulthard
What F1 history tells us about three-way title deciders
Formula 1
Formula 1
Abu Dhabi GP
What F1 history tells us about three-way title deciders
More from
Ferrari
F1 United States GP: Charles Leclerc completes perfect Friday by topping FP2
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
14 h
F1 United States GP: Charles Leclerc completes perfect Friday by topping FP2
Exploring Ferrari's 'less than a tenth' US GP update package
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
16 h
Exploring Ferrari's 'less than a tenth' US GP update package
Latest news
Lamborghini World Finals | AM-LC Qualifying: Lewandowski dominates, taking pole for both races
Lamborghini Super Trofeo
LBST Lamborghini Super Trofeo
World Finals - Monza 2026
1 h
Lamborghini World Finals | AM-LC Qualifying: Lewandowski dominates, taking pole for both races
Marc Marquez: “In the first half of 2026, all I wanted to do on Sundays was lie on the sofa”
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Australian GP
1 h
Marc Marquez: “In the first half of 2026, all I wanted to do on Sundays was lie on the sofa”
"Just undriveable" – Isack Hadjar looking for answers after "massive" struggles in Austin practice
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
United States GP
2 h
"Just undriveable" – Isack Hadjar looking for answers after "massive" struggles in Austin practice
Maverick Vinales: “If I stay at home, I don’t get paid”
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Australian GP
2 h
Maverick Vinales: “If I stay at home, I don’t get paid”
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe