2012 sagas 'binding Red Bull together' - Vettel
Aug.2 (GMM) World champion Sebastian Vettel insists he and Red Bull will keep their eyes on the ball in 2012, despite the rocky road of the opening half of the season.
The 25-year-old German began the season bidding to join very illustrious company, with Juan Manuel Fangio and Michael Schumacher the only other drivers in modern F1 history to have won three drivers' titles on the trot.
But with half of this year's Grands Prix now in the past, Vettel is 42 points adrift in the 2012 chase and just third, with his team Red Bull seemingly always in the middle of one sort of controversy or another.
Whether it's the latest technical saga, or a post-race penalty described by Dr Helmut Marko as the "death penalty for stealing chickens", it has not been plain sailing for Red Bull.
Some even smell a conspiracy.
"We had a good car with a double diffuser, but it was banned," Vettel told Germany's Sport Bild. "We had a good car with a blown diffuser -- it was also banned.
"Why?" he wondered. "I have no idea."
Add to that the separate 'hole in the floor', wheel hub, engine mapping and ride-height adjuster sagas of 2012, and Vettel might be forgiven for wondering if Red Bull's focus could be at risk of succumbing.
Not so: "All the trouble lately is not pushing us apart," said Vettel, when asked about Red Bull's unity. "Actually it binds us together even more."
But for now, he is just happy to be staring into a long break.
"It's a long season," said the German. "If you compare it to a lot of other sports, it's one of the longest seasons there are.
"I think it's important, even if sometimes you would like to carry on, I think you need the break, so it's important to make use of it."
Share Or Save This Story
Jules Bianchi's father speaks of family's continued hopes
Sauber under no illusions about constructors' position
Pirelli chief calls for radical F1 overhaul
On this day: Michael Schumacher wins… and stuns tifosi with F1 retirement
F1 fans left emotional after Sebastian Vettel drives Michael Schumacher's Ferrari F2002 at Monza
WATCH: Sebastian Vettel pays emotional Michael Schumacher tribute in Ferrari F2002 - "I felt him a lot today"
“I’m not enjoying life” – How Yuki Tsunoda’s Red Bull F1 stint “exhausted” him
Red Bull insists “there is nothing wrong” with Isack Hadjar's recovery
How Kimi Antonelli is proving unbeatable, even when he's beaten
Max Verstappen takes just 14 laps to overtake 100 amateur karters in manic event
Hendrick to bring back iconic neon yellow car numbers for 2027
NASCAR changes wet-weather tire policy for Bristol to give teams more control
Max Verstappen beats the 100 in blistering time as it happened
F1 doesn't need to change its VSC rules despite Lando Norris' Spain loss
Why Lando Norris doesn’t buy George Russell’s driving style theory
How Kimi Antonelli is proving unbeatable, even when he's beaten
How Norris unfurled a surprising - and "unrepeatable" - Spanish GP pole lap
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments