FORMULA ONE JAPAN GRAND PRIX:SEBASTIAN VETTEL yesterday became the youngest double champion in Formula One history with third place at a Japanese Grand Prix won by McLaren's Jenson Button.
The Red Bull Racing driver went into the weekend needing just a 10th-place finish to seal his second title and with Vettel having been on the podium at all but one race so far this season, that he would complete the job was never in doubt. Despite the apparent facility of his task, however, he insisted he would try to do it in style, with victory.
And after an aggressive start from pole, in which he jinked so hard towards the fast-starting Jenson, the McLaren driver was left with two wheels on the grass, it was clear Vettel was determined to seize his crown in the commanding manner in which he had marched to the brink of glory with five races of the season to spare.
Button got straight on the radio, insisting Vettel “must get a penalty for that” but the race stewards demurred, allowing the champion elect to hold his lead as a rattled Button fell back behind team-mate Lewis Hamilton.
Button was soon back in the hunt, however. Hamilton, who once again had a torrid afternoon, burned through his first set of tyres and when Button pressed, the 2008 champion had no answer.
That pass was Button’s cue to close down Vettel and, as has become his trademark, he did it by looking after his tyres better. By the time Vettel dived towards pitlane for his second stop, Button had closed to within 1.6 seconds and had a lap in hand before he would need to take on another set of soft tyres.
A quick in-lap, a perfectly executed pit stop, and Button emerged marginally ahead of the Red Bull driver and on his way to his third win of the year.
“It was a great race,” said Button “The start was very good, maybe too good, and I ended up on the grass, which lost me a bit of time. It was a very exciting race and it wasn’t just down to being quick over one lap. You really had to think through the race. I really enjoyed it out there.
“It is always a very special place to race, Suzuka, a fast, flowing circuit and it is unforgiving, so one little mistake and it is game over. To get the win here is one of my most special victories as I don’t think I have ever won a race on such a high-speed circuit, so it means a lot to me.”
Last year, the 24-year-old Vettel had to wait until a nerve-shredding final-round, four-way title fight, to claim his first championship. Afterwards, enveloped in a publicity whirlwind, the sport’s youngest champion claimed he’d had no time to savour his achievement. This year, he’s been doing so almost since May, when he wrapped up a fifth win from the first six events with a dominant Monaco race that put him 58 points clear of Hamilton. Since then the crown has been pretty much his to throw away.
And whereas last year he almost did that – through a combination of mechanical and mental unreliability that encompassed blown tyres, blown engines and races blown through pure brain fade – this season Vettel has been remarkably sure-footed. Indeed, he is the only driver from the grid at the start of the season to have recorded a finish at every round.
“To win the championship here is pretty special and a bit funny at the same time, because it’s as confusing as the first one,” he said. “All of sudden, you’re supposed to: ‘Yep, that’s the moment, now enjoy’. I think it will take a little bit of time, but the season has been fantastic. I think, with a less dominant car than last year, we were able to do a very, very good job. Every time it mattered, we made very few mistakes, especially at those times when it was critical, we were there, we were performing.
“I think the secret, if there was one this year, is we could trust, 100 per cent, the guy next to us and that’s for the whole team. I think what we have achieved at Red Bull Racing is incredible and we obviously hope to enjoy the rest of the year.”
For Vettel and Button it was a day to remember, but for Hamilton another to banish from the mind as quickly as possible. Struggling once again to cope with heavy tyre wear he dropped to fifth and a race-long tussle with his season-long nemesis Felipe Massa. Predictably, they again collided, a fortnight after Massa had accused Hamilton of “not using his brain” after a coming together in Singapore.
Massa was incandescent after their latest coming together. “I don’t care what he says, I care about what the FIA sees and does,” he fumed. “I’m sure they’ve penalised people for much less this year.
“It was the second race in a row, and after the problem in qualifying in Singapore, and after what happened again yesterday and many times this year, the FIA needs to take care of that.”
Standings
JAPANESE GRAND PRIX, Suzuka
1. J Button (Britain) McLaren 1 hour 30:53.427s; 2. F Alonso (Spain) Ferrari +00:01.160; 3. S Vettel (Germany) Red Bull 00:02.006; 4. M Webber (Australia) Red Bull 00:08.071; 5. L Hamilton (Britain) McLaren 00:24.268; 6. M Schumacher (Germany) Mercedes 00:27.120; 7. F Massa (Brazil) Ferrari 00:28.240; 8. S Perez (Mexico) Sauber 00:39.377; 9. V Petrov (Russia) Renault 00:42.607; 10. N Rosberg (Germany) Mercedes 00:44.322.
DRIVER STANDINGS
1. S Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 324 pts
2. J Button (Bri) McLaren 210
3. F Alonso (Spn) Ferrari 202
4. M Webber (Aus) Red Bull 194
5. L Hamilton (Bri) McLaren 178
6. F Massa (Bra) Ferrari 90
7. N Rosberg (Ger) Mercedes GP 63
8. M Schumacher (Ger) Mercedes GP 60
9. V Petrov (Rus) Renault 36
10. N Heidfeld (Ger) Renault 34
