Webber hails Porsche's "real demonstration" in Shanghai
Mark Webber believes Porsche’s victory in the WEC 6 Hours of Shanghai was a ‘’real demonstration’’ of the German manufacturer’s prowess in sportscar racing.
Webber, along with teammates Brendon Hartley and Timo Bernhard, romped to Porsche’s sixth victory of the season, securing enough points to grab the manufacturers’ crown.
The Australian, who retires at the end of the season, hailed what Porsche has achieved since its return to sportscar racing in 2014, praising the team’s ability to deliver a race-winning machine.
“Today is all about Porsche, the second consecutive championship for the team," he said. "We have put an immense about of pressure on the opposition in the new era.
“I think we as drivers have take our hat off for the whole team. It’s a very difficult category. Operationally, the team has just been... this is how Porsche goes motor racing. It’s been a real demonstration.
“For me it’s a real honour to be involved in and to get this type of results week in and week out because they don’t just fall off a tree. Very special."
Webber also joked about Shanghai being his last opportunity to spray champagne on the podium in his professional career.
"It’s the last time I get to have champagne on the podium, because in Bahrain, if it goes well, you have rosewater," he said.
"The boys wanted the bloody champagne, so here we got it and blew my head off with it!"
Nose-change scare
The defending champions survived a scare towards the end of Hartley's second stint, when a large piece of rubber flew up from the track and damaged the front bodywork.
It forced the #1 crew to perform a nose change at the car's second pitstop, when Hartley handed over to Bernhard, although in the end this cost the team little time.
“It was a really clean couple of stints until three laps to the end, when a football-sized bit of rubber took out my headlight," explained Hartley.
"It was good we picked up on that, got the change done straight away. It was an awesome job, really the perfect day for us."
Additional reporting by Jamie Klein
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About this article
| Series | WEC |
| Event | Shanghai |
| Location | Shanghai International Circuit |
| Drivers | Brendon Hartley , Mark Webber |
| Teams | Porsche Team |
| Author | Rachit Thukral |
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