Webber could face charges for bike crash

Nov.27 (GMM) Tasmanian police could charge the injured Mark Webber, if it is found the Australian formula one driver caused his head-on cycling crash with a four-wheel drive on a public road last weekend.

The 32-year-old Red Bull racer is still recovering from surgery for his badly broken right leg in a Hobart hospital, but the local newspaper The Mercury said police were considering formal charges either against Webber or the driver of the car.

Inspector Glen Woolley confirmed: "We must look at the criminality of it to determine whether or not there was a statutory offence -- a traffic offence."

He said it is possible that charges will be laid against "the driver or the bike rider".

"It could be (for) inattention or fail to keep left. We look at the criminality of it," Woolley added.

He explained that, should Webber be charged, he would receive a summons to court.

Geoff Donohue, director of the outdoor adventure challenge and involved with the driver's management, defended Webber.

"He's been a wonderful ambassador to the state, taking the message of Tasmania globally," he said.