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Mark Webber believes the quality of the Formula 1 grid has dropped since he made his debut in 2002 because of the prevalence of pay drivers.

The Australian believes financial concerns are forcing teams to focus on budget rather than talent, and that some of the most worthy drivers are being overlooked.

In what he labelled a 'sad state', Webber believes that has diluted the quality of the current grid to the extent it is actually weaker than it was 13 years ago when he made a home soil debut with Minardi.

"When I was on the grid at the back with Minardi you had Irvine, Salo - all those guys had been on podiums," Webber said.

"The grid was just packed full of guys who had won in F3000, won a lot of impressive races.

"[Now] there are a lot of talented guys out there, but a lot are slipping through the net unfortunately. That's a sad state.

"[Robin] Frijns for example is a phenomenal young talent, [but] has got no cash."

Webber said he remains focused on ensuring protege Mitch Evans reaches F1, but admitted he is wary of the 19-year-old being promoted too early.

Evans won last year's GP3 championship and has taken four podiums for Arden in his maiden GP2 campaign in 2013.

Asked about the example of Sergey Sirotkin, who is set to race for Sauber next year, Webber said entering the sport so young could present a safety concern.

"Maybe it's a safety worry, we'll see," Webber said of drivers being promoted so early.

"You can drive the car, but for sure it's not the optimal point to enter I don't think.

"My job is to get Mitch there to show what he can do, [but] there's not much testing going on at the moment [so] you have to see what they can do in the period they have.

"Is he [Sirotkin] a Kimi or Sebastian? We'll find out."

Australian GP starting grids - comparing Webber's debut with his final home grand prix 2002 2013 1. Rubens Barrichello 1. Sebastian Vettel 2. Michael Schumacher 2. Mark Webber 3. Ralf Schumacher 3. Lewis Hamilton 4. David Coulthard 4. Felipe Massa 5. Kimi Raikkonen 5. Fernando Alonso 6. Juan Pablo Montoya 6. Nico Rosberg 7. Jarno Trulli 7. Kimi Raikkonen 8. Giancarlo Fisichella 8. Romain Grosjean 9. Felipe Massa 9. Paul di Resta 10. Nick Heidfeld 10. Jenson Button 11. Jenson Button 11. Nico Hulkenberg 12. Olivier Panis 12. Adrian Sutil 13. Jacques Villeneuve 13. Jean-Eric Vergne 14. Mika Salo 14. Daniel Ricciardo 15. Heinz-Harald Frentzen 15. Sergio Perez 16. Allan McNish 16. Valtteri Bottas 17. Enrique Bernoldi 17. Pastor Maldonado 18. Mark Webber 18. Esteban Gutierrez 19. Eddie Irvine 19. Jules Bianchi 20. Pedro de la Rosa 20. Max Chilton 21. Alex Yoong 21. Giedo van der Garde 22. Takuma Sato 22. Charles Pic