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Webber still targeting title with Red Bull

Laurence Edmondson July 5, 2011 « Jenson Button looks forward rather than back | »
Mark Webber: "It's obviously very, very challenging but not impossible" © Getty Images
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Mark Webber believes he can still win a championship with Red Bull before the end of his career.

Webber has yet to renew his rolling year-by-year contract with the team for next season, with both sides insisting there is no rush to sign a new deal. When asked by ESPNF1 if he felt he could still win a title if he stays at Red Bull, Webber said: "Yes. I can. It's obviously very, very challenging but not impossible."

Webber is currently 77 points behind his team-mate Sebastian Vettel in this year's title chase after struggling to get to grips with the new Pirelli tyres this season. Earlier this year he said his decision to stay at Red Bull would be based on how he feels when the negotiations come around, but he insists that his start to 2011 has not affected his motivation for 2012.

"It doesn't change anything really for motivation levels," he added. "You've got to keep pressing him obviously. If you're winning, you want to keep winning obviously and if you're not you've got to work out how you can try and do that.

"I'm taking each race [as it comes], as all the drivers are. We can't look ahead and say I'm thinking about Monza this weekend, I'm thinking about Silverstone. We've got to tackle Silverstone and get the best job done there and they we go onto the next race which is Germany.

"So you take each race as it comes and in terms of the results earlier this year, that doesn't really effect … you're either doing a good job or you're not personally, you can't judge what you might do next year on what someone else is doing [now]."

Red Bull boss Christian Horner recently said it is "very, very likely" that Webber would stay at the team to partner Vettel in 2012. When asked by ESPNF1 if Webber could still take a championship with the team and if he would get the opportunity to do it next year, Horner said: "Absolutely, I think that Mark is more than capable of doing that. He's driving incredibly well, these tyres have been a tough transition but he's getting stronger and stronger and we're very happy with the job that both our drivers are doing."

Laurence Edmondson is the deputy editor on ESPNF1

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Laurence Edmondson is deputy editor of ESPNF1 Laurence Edmondson grew up on a Sunday afternoon diet of Ayrton Senna and Nigel Mansell and first stepped in the paddock as a Bridgestone competition finalist in 2005. He worked for ITV-F1 after graduating from university and has been ESPNF1's deputy editor since 2010