Australia's No1 was on top of the Formula One drivers' championship for much of last year only to finish third and behind his title-winning Red Bull team-mate Sebastian Vettel

Mark Webber stretches out at home on a quiet and misty Buckinghamshire morning and, with little time left before a new Formula One season begins on Sunday in his native Australia, asks another question in a probing series of queries. "Mate," Webber says, his engaging thoughtfulness turning a formal interview into a refreshing conversation, "if you're not world champion are you a failure?"

It is an intriguing question from an interviewee, especially when set against the backdrop of Webber's tumultuous last season in which, having led the drivers' championship for so long, he finished third. Webber's disappointment was accentuated by the fact that Sebastian Vettel, his team-mate and bitterest rival, won the title in the final race. It was the first time Vettel had led the championship all year and his victory seemed to justify Red Bull's apparent favouring of the young German over the 34-year-old Australian who had spent much of his career struggling in mediocre cars.

"Only one guy can be world champion," Webber says in answer to his own question, "and so if everyone else thought they were failures you'd have no one left on the grid."

Webber shrugs and grins, neatly capturing his pain and pride after a season in which he won four grands prix, reached the podium six more times and still ended up wishing he could have sealed his transformation from journeyman to world champion. "I was very disappointed," Webber says. "I wasn't interested in finishing second or third. When you get that close you just want to win. But I try to keep things as real as possible. You could be diagnosed with cancer tomorrow and …"

The burningly competitive racer makes a soft hiss through his teeth, as if a candle has just been snuffed out. "I don't have too many regrets. I scored points in every race, apart from two non-finishes. They probably cost me the title; but I could have been out of it with six races left."

Webber taps his chest. "It's the old thing about the bloke in the mirror. If you're lying to him then you're in trouble. But if you don't leave any change on the table, you do your best but still get beaten, you can live with it. I'm still absolutely rapt with what I've achieved."

His long-term English partner, Ann Neal, sits with us, and Webber describes their big gamble of a move across continents in 1995. "You know, when Annie and I left Australia to come here, an impressive list of people said to me: 'You will never, ever, get to Formula One.' A lot of people are very quiet now. That's good. I've won many battles but the last chapters are very important."

Webber is about to start his 10th season in Formula One, and the years have left their mark. After the last day of pre-season testing in Barcelona this month, "I walked in the door and said: 'Annie, another test. I've done so many.' But I enjoy the people I'm working with and, last night, I lay in bed for an hour and a half, thinking, 'What do I need to talk about to the engineers next?' That's a good sign. It's normal to be like this in pre-season."

On the first day of testing, Webber had been quicker than anyone. "I was quick, mate," he says. "But Sebastian was quickest the next day. Seb's not slowing down. Same goes for Fernando [Alonso]. I need to turn up and do my stuff."

Webber's battle with Vettel last year was often acrimonious – and intensified by the way Red Bull made decisions that seemed to benefit their younger driver. Have he and Vettel attempted to settle their differences? "We had a good chat after the last race. It was more comfortable for us to talk after the last bell had rung – and to put aside our team bosses. It was just us, as drivers, and that was of use."

Did Vettel acknowledge Webber's contribution to a compelling season? "Probably," Webber murmurs. "He's still a young guy, mate. We spoke about the age difference among certain other things. But of course we're competing again."

Last year, the tension at Red Bull reached its highest pitch just before final qualifying for the British grand prix, when the team removed a new front wing from Webber's car and put it on Vettel's. The night before the race, Webber felt "very empty". He still went out the next day and drove imperiously, leading from the first corner.

"My dad said he'd never seen me that way before a race – ever," Webber says. What did his father see? "Quietness. I knew the start was the most important thing. The fact it went my way was huge. But the bloke upstairs dealt me some good cards that day. Is it karma?"

Webber greeted his win at Silverstone by making a dry quip over the car radio as he took the chequered flag: "Not bad for a No2 driver …" A furore erupted.

Will he be as honest this season? "It's a frustratingly difficult question because at the end of your career you want to be just like you were in the early years. But you've got to be very careful because the media is so powerful. My gut says we should take things head-on and deal with the consequences later. Emotionally, I usually go back to my default and say what I feel is right."

This year, with the first race scheduled for Bahrain, Webber was the only driver who came out and said, while Bernie Ecclestone vacillated, that the grand prix should be cancelled. He stressed that political struggle in the Middle East is far more important than Formula One. Does it not wear him down to be a solitary voice in a self-obsessed world? "That might be a little harsh because some of the guys, like Nico Rosberg, speak five or six languages. That's phenomenal. I'll never be able to do that as long as my arse points to the ground. Nico's highly intelligent. Is he interested in what's happening with Libya and Gaddafi? I don't know. Some of the guys think it's a hassle [to talk honestly].

"I give my opinion – whether it's about Bahrain or if I'm asked if Lewis Hamilton is going to have a tough season. It's hilarious how people hook into you for having an opinion. If you talk to me about my job I'll tell you what's going on because, believe it or not, I fucking well know what I'm talking about.

"You know, when my dad was a racing fan in Australia he would follow Jack Brabham and sometimes only hear if he won two days after a race – when the result finally appeared in his newspaper. These days I can tweet something and it's all over the world in seconds. We have to be much more careful. Words are dangerous and it's hard to be honest. You want to be more open and give the public a real snapshot – but you can get into trouble."

That understanding did not stop Webber's blunt rejection of Ecclestone's recent farcical idea that they should produce "artificial rain" to make Formula One more exciting. Webber shuddered before thinking of one of racing's greatest drivers, on a wet or dry track: "Jim Clark will be spinning in his grave." Webber recognises the rich history of his sport, and the capricious nature of fate, and he has spoken to many past greats. "Oh yeah – people like Brabham and Jackie Stewart. They took a lot more risks but the respect was there too. It was much, for want of a better word, 'fairer' then. We can have incidents on the track now and walk away whereas, then, you were playing with people's lives. If someone got it wrong it was down to luck whether the car caught fire and they got out.

I would definitely not have enjoyed the price you paid for a mistake, or dicing with death. Your brakes might fail and, poof, you would die. But I admire the fact it was very raw. The cars were much more basic and there was a lot more emotion. I'd still love to do what they did after a race, as a winner, and drive slowly around the track with the national flag. That's sport, that's emotion, and that's what people want."

Webber is shot through with warmth and compassion – especially when discussing the near-fatal accident that cut down his friend, Robert Kubica. Renault's Polish driver was in the midst of competing last month, for pleasure, in an Italian rally. "Rallying is Robert's first love, but he's obviously going to have some psychological doubts about what he does in the future. He's phenomenal behind the wheel of a Formula One car, producing effortless speed, but he had some horrific injuries – particularly to his right arm. I went to see him in hospital and it was pretty tough.

"He was still in intensive care and clearly in a bad way. He was propped up, and completely coherent, but you could see that, mentally, it's going to be an enormous challenge. It's too early to tell how his grip will be, how his hand and elbow will work, and the rehab is slow torture. But Robert's one of those characters who can take it on."

Webber's challenge is much simpler; but does he believe Red Bull have learned some valuable lessons? "I do. It happened last year because me and Seb were very even and we had lots of close duels. It's pretty unique to have two drivers going after the same thing the whole campaign. Let's hope it happens again because, undoubtedly, it will be handled better. There's no manual, for this stuff and human emotions are involved, and people want it pretty badly. It was uncharted water for all of us. You put yourself in a position where you think, 'Shit, I'm doing good stuff here.' It's up to me to do well again."

Can Webber, who turns 35 in August, match a driver 11 years younger than him in Vettel? "We've got the team all right. And yeah, I've got a tough rival driving the same car. I'm going to have to perform out of my skin to pull off the world championship. But that's how it should be. So yeah, mate, I'm ready to have another bloody good crack at it again."