Sebastian Vettel waves to the crowd after finishing second in Brazil. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Vettel Wants Quieter Coronation After 2011 Title: Sebastian Vettel has revealed he wants to enjoy a quieter coronation one year after becoming world champion for the first time in 2010. On the sidelines of the Race of Champions event in Dusseldorf, a reporter for the German news agency SID heard the Red Bull driver admit he was too busy with media and sponsor commitments after winning his first title a year ago. "The first days and weeks (after winning a title) are very busy," said the 24-year-old. "But we have learned from last year, when it was all very stressful, and try to do it better this time," added Vettel. The German said although there is still "a lot to do" in his immediate future, the period around Christmas will be "quiet". And there are no plans even for a holiday. "I actually have no desire to get on a plane," he said, a week after the final event on the 19-race 2011 calendar. "I have been flying all year long so I'll probably recharge my batteries by staying at home," revealed Vettel, who lives in Switzerland.

Berger Plays Down Reports Of Lotus F1 Role: Gerhard Berger has played down reports he is a contender to return to Formula One with a role at the Lotus team in 2012. International reports had predicted the former Grand Prix winner, BMW motor sport director and Toro Rosso co-owner will return from retirement amid rumors team boss Eric Boullier is leaving his role. "My perpetual holiday is continuing," the 52-year-old former Ferrari and McLaren driver is quoted as saying by Finnish newspaper Turun Sanomat.

No Friday Outings On Street Tracks For Bottas: Williams' new reserve driver Valtteri Bottas will not start his Friday practice duties until after the 2012 season opener in Australia. The Finn will only start appearing in the Renault-powered FW34 in Malaysia, a week after the first race, Finland's Turun Sanomat newspaper revealed. The newspaper also said Finn Bottas, 22 and fresh out of the junior GP3 class, will probably not split his 2012 program with a race seat in another category. "It might be better to invest 110 per cent in formula one," he is quoted as saying.

Hakkinen Predicts 'Very Difficult' Return For Raikkonen: Formerly his strongest supporter, Mika Hakkinen is now questioning how quickly his compatriot Kimi Raikkonen can get back up to speed in Formula One. When he retired a decade ago, Hakkinen recommended rookie Raikkonen to then McLaren team boss Ron Dennis by saying: "If you want to win, get the Finn." Now, a 32-year-old Raikkonen is reportedly busy losing the four kilograms he put on during his forays in world rallying and NASCAR. Hakkinen tells Bild am Sonntag: "The return will be very difficult for Kimi. He will have almost no time to test the new car -- five or six days, that's it. "If you lose a day with a problem you don't get it back, while in the past we used to sit in the cockpit from morning to night, because you get faster and faster the more time you have to get into the rhythm," he said. That is why, to help Raikkonen readjust after his two-year sabbatical, Lotus already has plans to circumvent the current testing restrictions by preparing the 32-year-old a 2009-spec Renault equipped with GP2 tires.

Raikkonen Owns Slice Of Lotus F1 Team: Kimi Raikkonen is also a minor shareholder of the newly-renamed Lotus team, according to reports. Spain's El Mundo Deportivo, and Italy's Italiaracing, claim the 2007 world champion traded income and performance bonuses for an actual slice of the Genii-controlled team that is based at Enstone, UK. He "could be the first 'driver-owner' in F1 in more than 20 years," the Spanish newspaper claimed. El Mundo said Finn Raikkonen, 32, proposed the idea to Williams but it did not take place "perhaps because (the British team) is listed on the stock exchange". Together with his management team headed by David and Steve Robertson, Raikkonen had his own 'Double R' F3 team. And he competed in world rallying this year with his own outfit by the name of Ice1 Racing, which is also involved in motocross.

Fernando Alonso finished fourth in the championship standings. (Photo: Getty Images)

Vettel's True Quality 'Yet To Be Seen' - Alonso: The jury is out as to whether F1's reigning back to back world champion is as good as Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso. That is the suggestion of Ferrari driver Alonso, who said the final test for dominant Red Bull driver Vettel, 24, is to prove he can regularly haul a less-than-perfect car to the top of the podium. The Spaniard was asked by the Diario Sport newspaper if he agrees with Pedro de la Rosa's recent assessment that only Alonso, Hamilton and Vettel are able to win races in something other than the best car in the field.
"We have seen two do it, for the third it is yet to be seen," said Alonso. "We will see when he has a car good enough to be sixth and he gets it to be second, third or fourth. Until now we have only seen him in a car that can win the championship with five Grands Prix to go. "So we have to wait," added the Ferrari driver.

Grosjean To Test BMW's DTM Car This Week: DTM is apparently at the top of the list should Romain Grosjean's bid to return to Formula One in 2012 not work out. The Swiss born Frenchman and new GP2 champion is hoping to move up from the reserve and occasional 'Friday' role to become Kimi Raikkonen's race teammate at Lotus in 2012. But it has emerged that, alongside German youngster Marco Wittmann, Grosjean will test BMW's new M3 car for the German touring car series this week at Monteblanco, in the south of Spain. "Both (Grosjean and F3 driver Wittmann) have shown what they are capable of on numerous occasions in their racing series. We are looking forward to seeing how they handle the BMW M3 DTM," said BMW motor sport director Jens Marquardt.