GreenBkk.com Formula 1 | Sebastian Vettel Q&A: I love racing at Silverstone

Sebastian Vettel Q&A: I love racing at Silverstone

Back in 2009 Sebastian Vettel was untouchable around Silverstone, scoring a dominant win for Red Bull. On Thursday Vettel talked to the media about his amazing start to the season, what he hopes to achieve at this year’s British round and why he enjoys racing at this circuit…

Q: Sebastian, your team’s headquarters are just a stone’s throw from Silverstone so it’s almost like a home race for Red Bull Racing. How much do you enjoy coming here? What do you like most about this track?

Sebastian Vettel: I would say it’s the only country where it rains and it’s sunny at the same time. (laughs) The track is really great and I know that all the drivers enjoy racing here. It has some fast corners where you really have to have guts. I really love coming here - and as you just mentioned - it is kind of a home race for us.

Q: You are not a big fan of statistics but what does six wins out of eight races mean to you?

SV: It’s true - statistics don’t mean much to me because you start every race with a clean sheet of paper and what you achieved at the race before doesn’t help you. Of course it is nice to make an impression on the sport, with your name coming up with so many pole positions, so many fastest laps and so many wins. But I am not sitting on the grid thinking that with one more win then I will surpass whoever. You race to win and not for statistics.

Q: Silverstone has been massively revamped since last year. Everything is very modern and sleek. How do you like it?

SV: It’s true that the buildings are very modern and we all have a lot of space to work in so that’s a good aspect. I think it’s a bit sad that the fans coming here can hardly see the pit stops as there is quite a significant difference between the level of the track and that of the grandstands. And for us drivers it’s a bit sad that we have lost the first corner because I think that Copse was always something special. When you were standing at the pit wall you could see how quickly the cars were flying towards you and then they turn right. Well that’s now a thing of the past, but if you only look backwards you don’t make a single move forwards. And I think that what we see now is a good step forward and I am expecting a very interesting weekend - for the drivers and for the fans.

Q: Eight of the 12 teams have their factories close by this track, including Red Bull and Mercedes. Do you believe there is a crisis brewing concerning the pace of the Mercedes and drivers Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg?

SV: I would not use the word crisis. We all know that the road to the very top is not an easy one and my understanding was always that it is a long-term project. But of course you are always judged on your last result and probably the season hasn’t developed in the way Mercedes anticipated it would. It shows how highly competitive Formula One has become. And though it probably looks so easy for us now, believe me it was a hard and thorny road to come to the point where we are now. And you have to be on the alert all the time because you can be pushed aside in the blink of an eye if your development speed slows down or you make just a marginal move in the wrong direction. So I think success always has something to do with patience and in never losing the will to succeed.

Q: Do you feel that after every victory it will be harder to achieve the same result at the next race?

SV: Who said that it was ever easy to win? And the ‘Vettel finger’ only goes up when we really deliver the maximum. I know that some here don’t like it - for obvious reasons - but I must say that it was never my intention to bruise someone’s ego with it. But there is the danger that you start to feel too comfortable in your role as the leader of the pack. It is key that you concentrate on every little bit so you reach the target. You shouldn’t stare at the target as then you can stumble over the little steps. We definitely will follow that principle this weekend. Hopefully it will pay off again on Sunday afternoon. I would appreciate a similar result to the one I enjoyed in 2009.

Credit: Formula One Administration Ltd (www.formula1.com)