Mark Webber perplexed by Haas' decision to rope in an 'overweight' Nico Hulkenberg

Mark Webber has expressed his "surprise" that Haas chose to pick Nico Hulkenberg as Kevin Magnussen's teammate for the 2023 Formula 1 season.

Haas chose to end their partnership with Mick Schumacher after two seasons together, the son of the seven-time World Champion, Michael, ultimately unable to do enough in the eyes of management to warrant at least another year on the F1 grid.

By picking Hulkenberg to replace him, it is symbolic in that it brings Haas' experiment trying to bring through younger drivers to an end. Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen are now set to form one of the most experienced line-ups on the grid.

Lack of talent

But Webber isn't particularly blown away by this driver market move and thinks it speaks volumes about the apparent lack of young driver talent currently trying to work their way through the racing ranks.

"I'm a little bit surprised, to be honest," Webber told Channel 4 when asked for his thoughts on Hulkenberg's move to Haas.

READ: Where will he go? Mick Schumacher's F1 future still uncertain after Haas axing

"I thought that it's a bit of a poor reflection on the talent pool underneath [F1] at the moment. I think there are not enough guys that they can lean on to move up [the ladder] and replace Mick.

"We know Guenther [Steiner, Haas team boss] is over rookies. He wants the other end of the scale and has gone for a veteran.

He jokingly added: "Nico can't crash that car at all; he's going to perfect next year.

"I know he's losing some weight right now as we speak. He's on the treadmill shaving that [fat] off, so good luck to him."

A complete line-up

With Haas deciding to no longer continue with Mick Schumacher and the F1 2023 driver line-up now complete, it means the young German will have to settle for a