Webber: Disrupted 2020 season 'is set up' for Hamilton

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F1 veteran Mark Webber says the particular circumstances surrounding this year's F1 season are "set up" for six-time world champion Lewis Hamilton.

Formula 1 will finally raise the curtain on its 2020 delayed campaign in just three weeks in Austria after a four-month hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Speaking in an F1 Nation podcast, Webber named his favourite for top honours this year and justified his unsurprising choice.

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"I think it’s Lewis," said the nine-time Grand Prix winner. "Yeah, this is set up for him: no mileage, disrupted programme, y’know this is a guy that needs no… he doesn’t need to hit tennis balls.

"He’s just a guy that can get on with it at very, very short notice so I think for him it’s going to be very, very special."

With no running conducted by the field since pre-season testing in Barcelona back in February, apart from outings in 2018 cars or limited mileage filming days, team and drivers will start on equal footing at the Red Bull Ring. And Webber is keen to see who gets up to speed fastest.

"There all in the same boat, that's the great thing about it," he said. "No one is coming back from an injury or mid-season or whatever…

"Yes, there's been a few guys being able to run old cars and what not.

"But ultimately when they drive out the pitlane in Austria and have basically what is a serious test session with a race on the end of it and world championship points at stake, it's going to get real very very quickly."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.