Forget the homework and sibling rivalry, not a night would pass when the pimply teen couldn't be found slung over the lounge, remote in hand, desperate to squeeze in an entire formula one video recording before dinner. Two if he could.

''I used to get home from school, two bowls of ice-cream, sit in front of the telly - and this was before Mum did tea, so homework - pfffft, that was kicked into touch early - and I'd try and get two grands prix in each night if I could,'' the formula one star tells The Sun-Herald.

''And we only had one TV. But if I got my tactics right, I could still get two grands prix in. We actually had a remote control, the one with the cord, so you could fast-forward which was pretty flash back then,'' he adds with a laugh.

''The sad thing was I already knew when the ads were coming up because I'd already watched the race about a dozen times.

''Mate, I was just fascinated. I used to bore people. Mates used to come around and I'd be showing them stuff and telling them stuff and looking back, they'd just be glazing over. Not even interested.''

But the skinny kid who terrorised schoolteachers and sister alike with stunts that'd make the Top Gear lads tip their hats, had a dream. He wanted to be a F1 driver. Had to be. And thanks to a few high-profile family friends, his teachers and family members weren't the only people the cheeky teenager pestered.

''I used to do Mick Doohan's head in - ringing up, Mick would probably be like, 'What the f--- is he ringing up now for?''' Webber says.

Doohan was a close friend of Webber's father, Alan, who owned a bike shop in Queanbeyan. ''It's amazing, I think, when you really have a good crack at something, how far you can get,'' he says.

''And I had some really good mentors and people who I could refer to, whether it was Mick Doohan on the motorbikes or people like David Campese, who have competed on the international stage. People who have had long careers on the international stage, backing up week in, week out, or year after year. I used to hang off their every word.

''And when you're young and incredibly naive - and sometimes naivete is a good thing because it gets you through some hideously tough situations and sometimes obviously you use it to make errors - it's also down to you to picking the phone up and having the balls to ring people and get on with things.

''So I was lucky. I'll remember that tomorrow. But I worked hard at it.''

The harder you work at something, the luckier you get - it's an age-old formula that typifies Webber's transformation from arguably one of F1's unluckiest drivers to a top-three star over the past 10 years.

''I've had good people around me over the years and I've been lucky in many respects, but I never for long look and say, 'Oh, I've been unlucky.' I know that I've had a great opportunity,'' says Webber, who reveals he often speaks with Queensland State of Origin coach Mal Meninga for advice on dealing with the pressure of being a professional athlete.

''Of course I've put some hard yards in, don't get me wrong. But at times, you think, 'Yeah, this is a great opportunity' and you have to grab it with both hands. And you know as a sportsman at this level that every time you compete it is important and there are some very good things that can happen. You want to keep your regrets to a minimum.

''It's that great line that Wayne Bennett said: 'The bloke standing in the mirror, if you're lying to him, well you're in trouble.' As long as you're real with yourself and you put everything you can into it, well … People obviously can say: 'He failed last year because he didn't win the championship.' Well, OK, you can argue that, but … look at the thousands of hurdles you overcame.''

It's obvious Webber, for all his fame and fortune, has remained as down to Earth as the F1 tragic of his youth. ''This is absolutely deadset, particularly when I had my [mountain bike] accident in Tasmania, it opened my eyes up. I often think about people who are in a much less fortunate situation than I am,'' says Webber, who admitted his grounded attitude comes from the support of his family and friends.

''I often think, 'Ah, I'm not going to train today, it's raining outside.' But then it's, 'Mate, get out there and get on with it.' Because it's so easy to get the shopping list of excuses out why you can't do things.

''Generally, they're the people who slip through the net, they don't survive or they have a short career. Then you see people who obviously don't have that choice and that's when you see how fortunate you are.

''Things are bloody good with me,'' he says with a smile.