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Formula 1
F1: Vettel In Elite Company
Sebastian Vettel drove brilliantly to win his third consecutive Word Driving Championship…
Formula One driver Sebastian Vettel has been named this year’s SPEED Performer of the Year. (Photo: Getty Images)
When Sebastian Vettel won his third consecutive Formula One championship in Brazil last November, he joined the sport’s most elite fraternity.
Still just 25 years old, Vettel became only the third driver in Formula One history to capture the World Driving Championship three years in a row. The other two were Argentinian great Juan Manuel Fangio from 1955-57, and Vettel’s fellow German pilot Michael Schumacher, who won five in a row from 2000-04.
Vettel’s sensational drive to title No. 3 in 2012 was also enough to earn him the coveted Mario Andretti Trophy as the SPEED Performer of the Year.
A year earlier, Vettel crushed the field, winning 11 times and earning 17 podiums, which allowed him to clinch his second championship.
Although his 2012 numbers slipped to five victories and 10 podiums, what made Vettel the winner of SPEED Performer of the Year honors is the way he charged through the field in the second half of the season to wrest the title away from Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso.
In a year that began with seven different winners in the first seven races, Vettel came on strong when he mattered most. After an alternator failure on his Red Bull Racing-Renault left him 22nd in the Italian Grand Prix on Sept. 9, Vettel fell all the way to fourth in points with 140, trailing Alonso (179), Lewis Hamilton (142) and Kimi Raikkonen (141).
Then, Vettel caught fire.
Vettel won at Singapore in late September, then followed that up by sweeping the three October races in Japan, Korea and India to move back into the points lead.
But what saved Vettel’s season is the drive he put on at Abu Dhabi. Vettel qualified third at the desert track, but his Red Bull was excluded from qualifying after stewards ruled the car didn’t have enough fuel in it. That meant Vettel would start 24th on the grid, though he chose to start from pit lane.
In a statement released by the team after qualifying, Vettel said, “One of the best ski jumpers of all times once said ‘Every chance is an opportunity’ and as far as we are concerned there are still plenty of chances tomorrow.”
Those words would indeed prove prophetic, as Vettel, aided by two safety cars, survived early contact and front-wing damage to drive to a podium finish, finishing third behind winner Raikkonen and Alonso.
“Obviously we had an interesting race, up and down all the time and a great result in the end,” said Vettel. “It was a big chance to lose out a lot today, but we didn't lose anything, so I'm very happy. The guys are pushing 100 percent. I feel very happy they're all behind me and I try to do my best for them.”
From there, Vettel did what needed to secure the title, finishing second behind Hamilton in the inaugural event at the new Circuit of the Americas facility in Austin, Texas. Vettel closed out the year with a sixth-place run in Brazil, enough to give him his third consecutive title by just three points over two-time champion Alonso.
As far as records go, that made Vettel the youngest triple champion Formula One has ever had, after already becoming the sport’s youngest champion and the youngest double champion.
And it made Vettel the SPEED Performer of the Year.
Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief of SPEED.com, Senior NASCAR Editor at RACER and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. You can follow him online at twitter.com/tomjensen100.
Still just 25 years old, Vettel became only the third driver in Formula One history to capture the World Driving Championship three years in a row. The other two were Argentinian great Juan Manuel Fangio from 1955-57, and Vettel’s fellow German pilot Michael Schumacher, who won five in a row from 2000-04.
Vettel’s sensational drive to title No. 3 in 2012 was also enough to earn him the coveted Mario Andretti Trophy as the SPEED Performer of the Year.
A year earlier, Vettel crushed the field, winning 11 times and earning 17 podiums, which allowed him to clinch his second championship.
Although his 2012 numbers slipped to five victories and 10 podiums, what made Vettel the winner of SPEED Performer of the Year honors is the way he charged through the field in the second half of the season to wrest the title away from Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso.
In a year that began with seven different winners in the first seven races, Vettel came on strong when he mattered most. After an alternator failure on his Red Bull Racing-Renault left him 22nd in the Italian Grand Prix on Sept. 9, Vettel fell all the way to fourth in points with 140, trailing Alonso (179), Lewis Hamilton (142) and Kimi Raikkonen (141).
Then, Vettel caught fire.
Vettel won at Singapore in late September, then followed that up by sweeping the three October races in Japan, Korea and India to move back into the points lead.
But what saved Vettel’s season is the drive he put on at Abu Dhabi. Vettel qualified third at the desert track, but his Red Bull was excluded from qualifying after stewards ruled the car didn’t have enough fuel in it. That meant Vettel would start 24th on the grid, though he chose to start from pit lane.
In a statement released by the team after qualifying, Vettel said, “One of the best ski jumpers of all times once said ‘Every chance is an opportunity’ and as far as we are concerned there are still plenty of chances tomorrow.”
Those words would indeed prove prophetic, as Vettel, aided by two safety cars, survived early contact and front-wing damage to drive to a podium finish, finishing third behind winner Raikkonen and Alonso.
“Obviously we had an interesting race, up and down all the time and a great result in the end,” said Vettel. “It was a big chance to lose out a lot today, but we didn't lose anything, so I'm very happy. The guys are pushing 100 percent. I feel very happy they're all behind me and I try to do my best for them.”
From there, Vettel did what needed to secure the title, finishing second behind Hamilton in the inaugural event at the new Circuit of the Americas facility in Austin, Texas. Vettel closed out the year with a sixth-place run in Brazil, enough to give him his third consecutive title by just three points over two-time champion Alonso.
As far as records go, that made Vettel the youngest triple champion Formula One has ever had, after already becoming the sport’s youngest champion and the youngest double champion.
And it made Vettel the SPEED Performer of the Year.
Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief of SPEED.com, Senior NASCAR Editor at RACER and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. You can follow him online at twitter.com/tomjensen100.
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