Sebastian Vettel Blog: Sweet taste of success

Sebastian Vettel talks tactics and savours victory after extending his lead at the top of the Formula One Drivers' Championship with a win at the Monaco Grand Prix

by Sebastian Vettel on May 30, 2011

What an amazing day! I know that champagne tastes sweet, but the one I drank after the ceremony in Monte Carlo tasted even sweeter than usual! I am indescribably happy with our win and very proud about the whole team. They did an amazing job today.

I think it's easy to describe the race in one word: thrilling. I'm sure it was for the spectators and fans and it definitely was for us drivers. I would never have expected a strategy like the one we had today and that we would be able to get to the finishing line with only one pitstop. Well, almost one pitstop! We talked about it a lot and decided to put it all on one and not go into the pit for a second time. The worst that could have happened was a third place but I think that we would also have won if the safety car had stayed out.

'I never expected that we'd be able to finish with only one pitstop'

The key to our success today was definetely our endurance and the fact that we never lost faith in ourselves. Even the pit stop, which wasn't perfect, didn't change that. We lost time and the lead through it but that was when we knew that we had to give everything we had and attack. In the end, this approach helped us get back into the lead and, when we had the safety car coming out towards the end, it helped me to relax a bit and cool off the tyres. After the restart, we luckily didn't have too many laps to go and after a few minutes we were finally allowed to celebrate this fantastic victory.

I'm pretty sure that we'll go on and party tonight and have an amazing time. I want to send out a big thank you to everyone involved in this victory. It wouldn't have been possible without you. And also a big thanks to all the fans – you were amazing guys!

Talk to you soon from Canada!

All the best,

Sebastian

Source: Red Bull

Seb Vettel Is The New King Of Monaco

Sebastian Vettel claimed his maiden Monaco Grand Prix win, but for the second time in two days his performance was overshadowed after a fellow driver was injured in a heavy shunt

On Saturday, a serious accident involving Sergio Perez's led to qualifying to be delayed while on Sunday Vitaly Petrov was involved in a crash that saw him being taken away by ambulance after picking up a leg injury.

The race was red flagged, but restarted after an 11-minute stop and Vettel - who had fresh rubber fitted to his car during the break - eased his Red Bull home with Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button closely behind.

Earlier, Vettel made a clean start alongside Button and Alonso. From then on it turned into a battle of the strategies.

McLaren looked like they had one over their rivals when they pitted Button earlier than usual for supersofts and got him out in clean air. However, his team-mate Lewis Hamilton's crash with Felipe Massa probably cost Button a potential win after the Safety Car was deployed.

That allowed the field to bunch up and with Button forced to stop for a third time, he lost valuable time to the top two, but Red Bull and Ferrari's decision not to pit their drivers again gave the McLaren driver an opportunity to attack on fresher rubber.

The trio found themselves tail-to-tail for the best part of 15 laps, but more drama was to follow with eight laps to go after Adrian Sutil, Petrov and Hamilton got tangled up during their scrap for sixth place together with backmarker Jaime Alguersuari. Petrov and Alguersuari both crashed out and the Safety Car was deployed. The race was then red-flagged as the medical team was called to tend to Petrov.

Once the track was cleared, the race was restarted under the Safety Car and turned into a five-lap shoot-out. Vettel, Alonso and Button held station, but there was one final incident when Hamilton tried to squeeze past Pastor Maldonado in sixth place. The duo made contact and the Williams driver came off second best.

The McLaren driver finished sixth while Mark Webber fourth and Kamui Kobayashi was fifth.

Results
01. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 2h09:38.373
02. Alonso Ferrari + 1.138
03. Button McLaren-Mercedes + 2.378
04. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 23.100
05. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 26.900
06. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 27.200
07. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
08. Heidfeld Renault + 1 lap
09. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
10. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
11. Rosberg Mercedes + 1 lap
12. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 2 laps
13. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 2 laps
14. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 2 laps
15. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps
16. Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps
17. Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps
18. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 5 aps

Retirements
Petrov Renault 68
Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 68
Massa Ferrari 33
Schumacher Mercedes 33
Glock Virgin-Cosworth 31
Perez Sauber-Ferrari 1

Source: Planet-F1

Monaco GP: Webber still eyeing victory

Mark Webber will once again start behind his team-mate Sebastian Vettel, the fifth time in six races

Mark Webber said he was still aiming for victory in the Monaco Grand Prix despite only qualifying on the second row.

Having taken a lights-to-flag victory around the streets last year, Webber knows the importance of qualifying on pole position at a track that is notoriously difficult to overtake at. Despite being outqualified by his team-mate Sebastian Vettel and McLaren's Jenson Button, Webber still said it was possible to win, especially with the 2011 regulations leading to more exciting races.

"The races are more mixed up this year compared to the last few years, and tomorrow is no exception," Webber said. "It's possible to win from P3 but, that said, qualifying is crucial here and pole is certainly a nice benefit to have. Seb did a great lap and deserved pole and JB [Button] did too."

Webber also said that Sergio Perez's crash had resulted in a "messy" qualifying session, but that the most important thing was that lessons were learned from the incident.

"It was a messy session for all of us - you never anticipate not getting a second go, but that's the way it fell today and bigger priorities took over when one of our colleagues, Sergio, had a crash.

"All our thoughts are with him; he's in great hands and he's talking and is conscious, which is good news; he'll bounce back I'm sure. We can learn from this in terms of safety here and it's probably an area that we need to look at improving for the future. Jenson was lucky and Karl Wendlinger back in the nineties - so there are a few places around here we need to keep an eye on."

Source: ESPNF1

Monaco GP : Vettel takes pole, Perez crashes

Sergio Perez's massive accident in qualifying for the Monaco GP overshadowed Sebastian Vettel's first Monaco pole position

Q3 was halted for almost 40 minutes after Perez suffered a huge accident, hitting the dividing barrier at the Nouvelle Chicane after losing control of his car over the bumps at the exit to the tunnel.

The medical staff and marshals were quickly on hand to assist the Sauber driver, who was taken directly to the local hospital in an ambulance. he was conscious and talking.

With the session resuming with just three minutes left on the clock, many expected a mad flying lap dash for pole position. However, it wasn't to be.

Instead the session came to a low-key end with Vettel on pole thanks to his earlier 1:13.556.Jenson Button will join him on the front row, having qualified ahead of Mark Webber and Fernando Alonso.

Times
01. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m13.556s
2. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m13.997s + 0.441
3. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m14.019s + 0.463
4. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m14.483s + 0.927
5. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m14.682s + 1.126
6. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m14.877s + 1.321
7. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1m15.280s + 1.724
8. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m15.766s + 2.210
9. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 1m16.528s + 2.972
10. Sergio Perez Sauber-Ferrari No time
11. Vitaly Petrov Renault 1m15.815s + 1.540
12. Rubens Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 1m15.826s + 1.551
13. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1m15.973s + 1.698
14. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1m16.118s + 1.843
15. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1m16.121s + 1.846
16. Nick Heidfeld Renault 1m16.214s + 1.939
17. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m16.300s + 2.025
18. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus-Renault 1m17.343s + 2.136
19. Jarno Trulli Lotus-Renault 1m17.381s + 2.174
20. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m17.820s + 2.613
21. Timo Glock Virgin-Cosworth 1m17.914s + 2.707
22. Jerome D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth 1m18.736s + 3.529
23. Tonio Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth No time
24. Narain Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth No time

Source: Planet-F1

Webber: 'A lot of question marks' ahead of Monaco

Red Bull Racing star Mark Webber suggests this weekend's Monaco Grand Prix could be even more of a lottery than usual - as Christian Horner warns McLaren-Mercedes has taken a big step forward

As he bids to make it back-to-back victories in the most glittering race on the annual F1 schedule, Red Bull Racing star Mark Webber contends that there are 'a lot of question marks' approaching this weekend's Monaco Grand Prix.

Webber celebrated the finest moment of his top flight career to-date around the narrow, tortuous streets of Monte Carlo last year, leading from lights-out to chequered flag in the glamorous Principality to seal a tremendously popular triumph and confirm his status as a genuine title contender.

Returning to the scene of his success twelve months on, the Australian is under pressure to deliver a good result and turn the tables on runaway Red Bull team-mate Sebastian Vettel – but he cautions that with so many changes this year, a race already renowned as one of the most unpredictable on the calendar could throw up even more surprises than usual.

“We know this is one of the most prestigious races of the year,” the 34-year-old acknowledged. “There are a lot of question marks going into this year's race in terms of how the tyres will be, and the strategy could be the most complicated of the year. It's a track that I've always seemed to do reasonably well at, though, and I have some of my best memories as a racing driver there.

“It's clearly a demanding street circuit, which requires incredible concentration and composure for the drivers throughout the weekend, starting with Thursday's practice sessions. The dramatic coastline and cliffs make an incredible backdrop to one of the most famous tracks in the world – it's clearly like no other circuit we race at.”

“It's remarkable to drive an F1 car around Monaco,” concurred Vettel, who will arrive there with a commanding 41-point margin over any of his pursuers in the chase for the drivers' crown, having won four of the five grands prix this season to-date. “It's a completely unique track and a unique challenge for the driver. You have to push as hard as on a normal racetrack, but the smallest mistake can bring a big penalty.

“Grid position is very important and can determine your race, as traditionally, overtaking in Monaco is very tricky. Managing the traffic during qualifying is also a big challenge. As an event, it's one of the highlights of the year. We did well there last year, and I hope we can be very strong again.”

Meanwhile, RBR team principal Christian Horner has argued that the reason Vettel was pushed so hard for victory by Lewis Hamilton in last weekend's Spanish Grand Prix – despite an advantage of the best part of a second in qualifying – was that McLaren-Mercedes had brought a substantial raft of upgrades to its MP4-26.

“We knew it would be a close battle,” the Englishman told Finnish newspaper Turun Sanomat. “It would be very presumptuous to believe we have a car that is one second per lap better. We just had a phenomenal qualifying. I stress that McLaren brought an enormous update to Spain – it's almost a B-model.”

Source: Crash.net

Webber: Margin for error very fine

Although he feels his start in Spain wasn't as "hideous" as some suggest it was, Mark Webber admits there is not much room for error

Webber started on pole position for the first time this season after ending his team-mate Sebastian Vettel's qualifying dominance on Saturday.

However, his joy was short-lived on Sunday as he allowed both Fernando Alonso and Vettel to pass him off the start.

It was always going to be an uphill battle for the Australian after that as it affected his strategy for the rest of the race.

"I don't think the start was hideous," he told BBC Sport.

"Fernando got a phenomenal one, he got down the inside and I was a bit compromised and then Seb was on the outside. It was not the start we had planned and then it was just chess from there. People covered each other off stops.

"At the end of the race I finished 40 seconds behind Lewis and Fernando finishes a lap behind the leader. Interesting day today and it goes to show you how fine the margins are when you are off a little bit on strategy. If you can't clear people at the right time, you get exposed. At certain stages I was quick, other stages I wasn't."

Source:Planet-F1

Spanish GP: Seb Holds Off Hamilton

Sebastian Vettel refused to buckle under pressure as he held off a late charge from Lewis Hamilton at the Spanish Grand Prix to claim his fourth win of the season

The defending World Champion's latest win sees him stretch his lead at the top of the Drivers' Championship to 41 points ahead of the McLaren driver.

Unlike in previous races where Vettel was in cruise mode, he had to work hard for his victory in Barcelona. After starting P2 on the grid, he had to battle without KERS for the latter part of the race but did just enough to keep the charging McLaren driver at bay.

Jenson Button claimed the final podium place with Mark Webber fourth and Fernando Alonso fifth.

Alonso looked like he was up for the race as he made a sensational start from P4 to ease into the lead off the line. While the two Red Bull drivers were keeping an eye on each other, the Spaniard snuck through on the inside and he kept himself in the lead until the second round of pit stops.

Unfortunately for Ferrari, Alonso didn't just lose out to Vettel during the stop, but also to Hamilton. Alonso was quickly dropped by the two front-runners and it wasn't too long before Webber and Button caught up and overtook him.

Button, whose strategy cost him a possible podium place in Turkey, was vindicated for sticking to the three-stopper this time as he was able to hold off Webber for the final podium place.

Results
01. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1h39:03.301
02. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 0.630
03. Button McLaren-Mercedes + 35.697
04. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 47.966
05. Alonso Ferrari + 1 lap
06. Schumacher Mercedes + 1 lap
07. Rosberg Mercedes + 1 lap
08. Heidfeld Renault + 1 lap
09. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
10. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
11. Petrov Renault + 1 lap
12. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
13. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
14. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
15. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
16. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 2 laps
17. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 2 laps
18. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 2 laps
19. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 3 laps
20. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 3 laps
21. Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth + 4 laps

Not classified/retirements:
Massa Ferrari 60
Kovalainen Lotus-Renault 49
Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth 29

Source: Planet-F1

Hamilton: Bulls are unbeatable

Such is Red Bull's pace that Lewis Hamilton says the only chance he has of beating them is if he can use the older faster part of the Barcelona circuit

Hamilton qualified in third place for the Spanish Grand Prix but found himself a second off the pace of the leading Red Bull of Mark Webber.

And although he expects that the gap will be less in race-pace, the McLaren driver concedes that beating the Red Bulls on Sunday afternoon may be a step too far.

"The old circuit is still there at the last two corners, I could use the (old, faster) last two corners to match their pace if I don't take the chicane... otherwise, no!" he joked.

"They have one second in qualifying, probably a second and a bit. But we will push as hard as we can, and push to save tyres in the run.

"We've been closer in previous races. I think we will be closer than one second (in race pace), but whether it is within a tenth or so we will see."

The Brit, though, is not letting Red Bull's clear advantage get him down.

"F1 is the pinnacle of motorsport, nothing comes easy. They have just done a better job. We are second quickest, we can't complain too much.

"I hope at some stage we have a significant improvement with the car so we have a proper race with these guys."

As for concerns that the flat-spot he suffered during qualifying when he made a mistake at the entry to Turn 10, Hamilton is confident it won't bother him.

"I don't think it will," he said when asked if the flat-spot would cause him problems.

"I mean I do have a flat spot but fortunately I can start on those tyres and we can rebalance the wheels, so it shouldn't be a problem for the race."

Source: Planet-F1

Vettel: Not a big disappointment

Although Sebastian Vettel's run of pole positions came to an end in Barcelona, the reigning World Champion insists it's not a "big disappointment."

Arriving in Spain, Vettel had a four-nothing record in qualifying for the season, however, his impressive run came to an end when his team-mate Mark Webber pipped him to the coveted grid slot by 0.200s.

The German insists that being dethroned is not a massive loss as he is still on the front row, and has an extra set of soft tyres available to him for Sunday's 66-lap race.

"I don't think we can speak of big disappointment," said Vettel.

"At the end of the day we made a good step forward and Barcelona is usually a place where you bring lots of parts, and find out they work.

"In Q1 I didn't get into the rhythm immediately but made it on prime tyres, in Q2 I felt happier on the soft compound and in last qualifying I lost a little bit too much, wasn't happy with my lap.

"We had some problems and Mark did a good job. It was between us, he did a better job today. Tomorrow is a long race, we saved a set of tyres - as did the top three and Jenson (Button) - we will see what we can do tomorrow."

But while Vettel may have qualified in second place, Red Bull's Achilles Heel was once again present in Spain as the German lacked KERS for the better part of qualifying.

However, he says that's not the reason he lost to his team-mate and expects Red Bull will have the issue resolved before the race gets underway.

"I didn't use KERS in Q2 and Q3, but it's not right to say I didn't have KERS and Mark got pole - he deserved pole.

"I am not afraid in the race, in the race I think we will be on top of it again. In the end it seems to be an endless story.

"The guys are pushing very hard, we did an exceptional job. Today we have proved our car has become quicker, we had a quick base but we made it even quicker - so big compliments to the aero guys."

Source: Planet-F1

Webber: Today was my day

Mark Webber may have beaten Sebastian Vettel to pole in Spain but the Aussie says what he would rather have is the P1 on Sunday afternoon

Webber brought Vettel's run of pole positions to an end at Barcelona on Saturday, crossing the line with a 1:20.981, two-tenths up on his team-mate's best.

"It was a good session," said the Aussie, who climbed out of his car after topping Vettel's time as he realised that no-one else had the pace to beat him.

"We didn't underestimate the other guys, but Seb and I thought we would be battling for pole.

"I was just praying my time went above the number one (referring to Vettel) as I crossed the finishing line, and it did.

"It was a nice lap, a good battle with Seb, and today was my day."

And with the winner of the Spanish Grand Prix having been the driver starting from pole position on the last 10 occasions, Webber says he hopes "I can make it 11.

"I will relax tonight have a good sleep and come back tomorrow. I am looking forward to trying to get the victory tomorrow.

"If I am in this position tomorrow coming out of the last corner then I will be happy."

Source: Planet-F1

Qualifying: Webber ends Vettel's run

Mark Webber became the first driver to beat Sebastian Vettel to pole position this season, achieving the feat in Spain on Saturday

With Red Bull dominating this weekend's proceedings, many were expecting a Red Bull 1-2 in qualifying and the reigning World Champions delivered.

However, instead of Vettel taking pole, as he has down in all four previous races, it was Webber who bagged the coveted grid slot by 0.200s ahead of his team-mate.

Lewis Hamilton took third place while Fernando Alonso finally improved on his qualifying P5 to take fourth, 0.003s up on Jenson button.

Vitaly Petrov and Nico Rosberg were next in line ahead of Felipe Massa and Pastor Maldonado in what proved to be a very strange, uneventful and downright boring qualifying shoot-out.

Michael Schumacher qualified P10 although the German never actually set a time.

Times
01. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m20.981s
02. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m21.181s + 0.200

03. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1m21.961s + 0.980
04. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m21.964s + 0.983

05. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m21.996s + 1.015
06. Vitaly Petrov Renault 1m22.471s + 1.490

07. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m22.599s + 1.618
08. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m22.888s + 1.907

09. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 1m22.952s + 1.971
10. Michael Schumacher Mercedes

11. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m23.231s + 1.691
12. Sergio Perez Sauber-Ferrari 1m23.367s + 1.827

13. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m23.694s + 2.154
14. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1m23.702s + 2.162

15. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus-Renault 1m25.403s + 3.863
16. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercede 1m26.126s + 4.586

17. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercede 1m26.571s + 5.031
18. Jarno Trulli Lotus-Renault 1m26.521s + 3.561

19. Rubens Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 1m26.910s + 3.950
20. Timo Glock Virgin-Cosworth 1m27.315s + 4.355

21. Tonio Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth 1m27.809s + 4.849
22. Narain Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth 1m27.908s + 4.948

23. Jerome D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth 1m28.556s + 5.596
24. Nick Heidfeld Renault No time

Source: Planet-F1

Vettel says DRS will be effective in Spain

Sebastian Vettel believes that DRS will spice up racing on the Circuit de Catalunya which has traditionally delivered processional and boring races.

Speaking on the eve of the Spanish Grand Prix weekend, the reigning World Champion said, “We know the Barcelona circuit well from winter testing, it should be suitable for our car and our plan is to get the best team result possible. Historically Barcelona is a circuit that is poor for overtaking, but with the DRS this will now be quite different.”

In the past three years, normal overtaking manoeuvres have been measured in single figures; on average, there have been 2.3 ‘normal’ passes for position per Spanish Grand Prix since 2008.

So if a circuit is going to provide a yardstick for the success of the 2011 regulations – which have so far seen an average of 24.5 ‘normal’ overtaking moves per race – then Barcelona is it.

Nevertheless, the Spanish race is popular with just about every driver. Vettel explains, “I like Spain and know Barcelona well from racing there, it’s a great modern city with lots of life and interesting architecture. I like the Spanish people and their culture, it’s always a fantastic atmosphere at Spanish sporting events, such as the grand prix and football matches.”

Vettel has won three of the four races so far this year in the pace setting Red Bull RB7 and arrives in Barcelona with 93 points to his name, 34 points up on his closest rival Lewis Hamilton.

Source: YallaF1

Red Bull Ring (A1-Ring) opening festivities

Last weekend was the official (re)opening of the Red Bull Ring - a race track in Spielberg, Austria, steeped in Formula One history. The opening attracted a variety of different racers as well as past and present greats from the motor sports scene. Take a look at the unveiling and find out what Sebastian Vettel, Mark Webber, Christian Horner and Adrian Newey think about it...



Source: NextgenAuto

Vettel, Lauda & Marko on the Red Bull Ring

The Red Bull Ring is officially open in Spielberg, Austria and it has already tempted motor racing stars Sebastian Vettel and Niki Lauda to check it out, with the help of Helmut Marko. Here's what they had to say about the Ring...

Sebastian Vettel – Formula 1 World Champion
I was 14-years-old the first time I was at Spielberg for a Formula König race and I watched the drivers there with great enthusiasm, including the Austrian, Bernhard Auinger. At that time I was very new to the Red Bull family. A lot of time has passed since then and it has changed a lot. I like the new track very much, as the core of the circuit remains the same. The downhill sections with the curves, which are still hanging to the outside, are very tricky, especially because today the track was wet. It would be very nice to drive a race here and I would be very happy if Formula 1 should return to the Red Bull Ring – preferably during my career! ;)

Niki Lauda – Three times Formula 1 World Champion
I first raced in Spielberg in 1971 and in 1984 and celebrated a home victory in the Austrian F1 Grand Prix. Today I went back and competed in the legend's race again, winning narrowly from Dieter Quester. It's really impressive what's happened here. I am very happy that the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg has been revived – it's a huge asset to the racing scene in Austria. The basic route is the same, but the whole course is in perfect condition and has similar modern facilities to those in Bahrain.

Helmut Marko – Red Bull Motorsport
What has been rebuilt, is truly unique. Not just the ring itself, but the entire project in Spielberg. The area is harmoniously integrated into the landscape. Not only motor sports fans, but families can spend an entire weekend there. The mood among the surrounding population is very good, everybody is happy that the area here has been revived.

Souce: Red Bull

Webber: I need to be inch-perfect

Mark Webber has said he needs to be "inch-perfect" in qualifying if he wants to beat Sebastian Vettel in the future.

Having been outqualified by Vettel in every race so far this season - the reigning world champion has been on pole at every grand prix - Webber has also yet to finish ahead of him and already finds himself 38 points adrift in the championship standings. After struggling in the first two races of the season, Webber has bounced back with consecutive podiums and is hoping to continue his run

"I've now finished fifth, fourth, third and second in the four races of the year, so the trend is going in the right direction," Webber wrote in his Telegraph column. "We're off to Barcelona next, which is a track I like a lot. I won there last year and finished third the year before, and we had two good test sessions there over the winter. I just need to keep working."

Webber did admit that in order to get the better of his team-mate in the future he was going to have a faultless weekend.

"He's at the top of his game at the moment and it's up to me to close the gap. To beat Seb in Spain, I'll have to do a better job than I did in Turkey. I'll need to be inch-perfect in qualifying and then have a cleaner first stint in the race than I did in Turkey because that will throw open a few more options in terms of strategy."

Source: ESPNF1

Sebastian Vettel's Dream Team

Source: AlessaFainello

Webber searching for Seb's weaknesses

Just three weeks after claiming Sebastian Vettel is beatable, Mark Webber is now struggling to identify his team-mate's "weaknesses"

The Australian was forced to settle for second place behind Vettel after another faultless pole to chequered flag display from the defending World Champion at the Turkish Grand Prix. Sunday's victory helped Vettel to stretch his lead in the Drivers' Championship to 34 points after just four races.

Webber admits it's difficult to stop his team-mate at the moment, but urged the rest of the pack to end his great start to the season.

"He is on top of his game," the 34-year-old said. "He's had a great start to the season and he is near to his maximum. It's not ideal for the rest of us, but it is up to us to bring that to the end sooner rather than later.

"Everyone has weaknesses, and it is up to you to interrogate those as much as you can. Seb has done a good start, and the team has done a great job so that is it."

Webber was left kicking himself after he got off to a poor start at Istanbul Park and slipped behind Nico Rosberg who, according to the Red Bull man, didn't make the cleanest of moves.

"I got the maximum I could actually," Webber said.

"It would have been difficult to beat Seb. It would have been easier if I was ahead of Rosberg. Nico is doing his race, fair enough, but he could have made a cleaner move initially. In the end the result is as it deserves to be, I think."

Source: Planet-F1

Turkish GP: Vettel Cruises To His Third

Sebastian Vettel demonstrated his maturity and Red Bull their pace as the German put in a faultless drive to take his third win of the season

Starting from pole position, the defending World Champion stormed into the lead, completely untroubled by those behind him.

From there it was but a walk in the park for the Red Bull driver, who only reliquished the lead when he stopped for fresh tyres.

Cruising across the line, having opted for a four-stop strategy, which included a late stop to ensure that no one on fresher tyres could take the victory away from him ala China style, Vettel bagged another 25 points towards his title defense.

Mark Webber and Fernando Alonso were involved in a thrilling battling seven laps from the end of the grand prix. It started earlier in the race when Alonso past Nico Rosberg in the opening few laps and then later took Webber with the use of his adjustable rear wing.

The Aussie had no answer for the Ferrari driver as he stormed by and had to settle in behind him. Both drivers opted for four-stop strategies to give them the edge in the closing stages but it seemed to give Webber more of the edge and paid Alonso back, overtaking the Spaniard to finish second in a Red Bull 1-2.

Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton lost his chance of fighting for a podium finish when his third stop took precious extra seconds+ due to a problem with his front right wheel nut.

He dropped down the order but fought back to fourth place before coming in for his fourth stop, which put him behind team-mate Jenson Button, who was on a three-stopper to Hamilton's four. With Hamilton on fresh rubber, Button had no answer to his team-mate, who took the position off him without a breaking a sweat.

Nico Rosberg, another four-stopper, was the next to take Button, a welcome feeling for the Mercedes GP driver, who seemed to spend much of the race dropping down the order. He had been P2 after the opening lap.

Nick Heidfeld, Vitaly Petrov, Sebastien Buemi and Kamui Kobayashi completed the points.

Results
01. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull 1:30:17.558
02. Mark Webber Red Bull +8.807
03. Fernando Alonso Ferrari +10.075
04. Lewis Hamilton McLaren + 40.232
05. Nico Rosberg Mercedes + 47.539
06. Jenson Button McLaren + 59.431
07. Nick Heidfeld Renault + 1:00.857
08. Vitaly Petrov Renault + 1:08.168
09. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso + 1:09.300
10. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber + 1:18.000
11. Felipe Massa Ferrari + 1:19.800
12. Michael Schumacher Mercedes + 1:25.400
13. Adrian Sutil Force India + 1 lap
14. Sergio Perez Sauber + 1 lap
15. Rubens Barrichello Williams + 1 lap
16. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso +1 lap
17. Pastor Maldonado Williams + 1 lap
18. Jarno Trulli Lotus + 1 lap
19. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus + 2 laps
20. Jerome D'Ambrosio Virgin + 2 laps
21. Narain Karthikeyan HRT + 3 laps
22. Tonio Liuzzi HRT + 5 laps

Source: Planet-F1

Webber: Looking good for the race

Mark Webber: We spoke before qualifying and decided that, as tomorrow is going to be a long race, every lap you could save today might help tomorrow. It turns out that we're in the best possible grid positions and the team did a good job, as we have saved a set of tyres too, so it's looking good

Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber is feeling confident ahead of tomorrow's F1 2011 Turkish Grand Prix.

Webber will start the fourth round of the season from second on the grid and while the Aussie was disappointed to again lose out to his team-mate, Sebastian Vettel, having been four tenths slower, he reckons the team's decision to only opt for one-run in Q3 will pay dividends in the race.

“I would have liked to have got a couple more tenths to have the margin. But obviously Sebastian did a very good lap for pole, but my lap wasn't too bad either,” Webber reflected.

“We spoke before qualifying and decided that, as tomorrow is going to be a long race, every lap you could save today might help tomorrow. It turns out that we're in the best possible grid positions and the team did a good job, as we have saved a set of tyres too, so it's looking good.

“There were some good decisions from the team. I'm happy with today and am looking forward to tomorrow's race.”

Red Bull Racing team boss, Christian Horner meanwhile was delighted to see his two men lock-out the front row, the first time the squad has managed that this year.

He also added that while it was a bit of a risk not to do two-runs in the shoot-out, the gamble did pay off.

“A great team performance,” he continued. “We elected not to do a second run with both drivers; we knew it would be a little tight, but strategically we believe it was the right thing to do, as both drivers now have a new set of tyres available for tomorrow's race.”

Source: Crash.net

Vettel: Strange but it worked

Sebastian Vettel says it was an "odd feeling" sitting in the pits during qualifying while watching his rivals try for his pole position

Vettel was in a class of his own in qualifying for the Turkish GP, putting in a 1:25.049 to take provisional pole by 0.405s over his Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber.

And because of the German's margin over his rivals, Red Bull opted to keep both him and Webber in the pits instead of putting in a late charge.

But, while the Red Bull duo were in the pits, their rivals where out on track, unsuccessfully attempting to put an end to Red Bull's front row lock-out.

"I am very happy with the result," said the defending World Champion.

"We did not have a trouble-free morning, so we had a bit to catch up. I like the track so that helps and it was nice to see that without that many laps I was able to come back and find the rhythm.

"It was funny because Mark and myself decided to skip the second run. It is strange the feeling. The others are on track and you know they can beat you.

"You can just watch and there is nothing you can do. It is good to save a set of tyres but it is an odd feeling. I'm very happy.

"Of course we talked about it before qualifying, we talked about what can happen, you never know, you don't know how quicker the others will be, how much fuels the others have on board.

"We saw in the last race and in the other races, we see this year the races have changed and important to handle the tyre situation, for both of us after the first run we had the feeling that we might be safe but you never know, you do that again until the day arrived, and other people prove you wrong.

"In the end you never know, if it works you are a hero if it doesn't you are not."

As a result of the team's decision, both drivers have an extra set of the softer option tyres available to them for Sunday's grand prix, a move that proved to be a race-winning decision for Lewis Hamilton last time out in China.

The reigning World Champ also took the time to once again apologise to his team for Friday morning's accident, which not only gave his mechanics a lot of extra work but also meant he had to play catch-up after sitting out the afternoon session.

"Apologies to the team and mechanics - obviously I damaged the car pretty much yesterday and we couldn't run at all, we missed the session in the afternoon," said Vettel.

"But they fixed it for today and I think they did a very good job.

"So I'm very happy with the result.

"It was not a trouble-free morning, we had a bit to catch up. It was nice to see that without that many laps I was able to come back and find the rhythm, so all in all I'm very happy today."

Source: Planet-F1