Vettel takes the quiet road to glory
From Don Riddell, CNN
July 8, 2011 -- Updated 1037 GMT (1837 HKT)
(CNN) -- There is a question that hangs over every sport, debasing the achievements of those who compete at the very highest level.
Be it golf, tennis or Formula One, the question remains the same: what is the true nucleus of a sportsman's success? Is it talent or technology?
This season it is Sebastian Vettel's turn to silence the doubters.
Few would argue his supremacy in F1. The 24-year-old champion has won six races, from seven poles and already commands a 77 point lead in the drivers' standings as we approach the half way point of the season.
Equally, few would argue with Red Bull's technical supremacy, such has been the speed and new-found reliability that has been the cornerstone of Vettel's remarkable first half of the season. Is it the man or the machine that has secured his advantage? Vettel is unequivocal.
"It always needs both," Vettel told CNN in an interview ahead of Sunday's British Grand Prix.
"Surely in Formula One you depend on your car. In a bad car you do not always win. You know I always thought there is an opportunity to do great even when I was racing in cars that were not that competitive and able to win. My target going into the race was always winning.
"I think it still needs the drivers to push the team to make sure you keep that level, you know you keep developing yourself and the team and together you can achieve that next step."
This Sunday's grand prix could be a crucial moment in the season. Another win for Vettel would make the second half the season in danger of becoming a formality. And although Formula One is a sport that venerates the legends that have ruled it -- be they (Alain) Prost, (Ayrton) Senna or (Michael) Schumacher -- that veneration happens only after they hang up their steering wheels. As they collect their laurels, the familiar criticism that the sport has become "boring" can be heard.
"I think the races this year have been exciting," Vettel says in answer to criticism that this season has become monotonous, in part, due to his and Red Bull's dominance.
"The race is not decided after the first corner or the first lap. There's a lot that can happen later on. So, you know there is this tension and this excitement so I think it's different to what we have seen in Formula One maybe 10 years ago.
"Sometimes you have the best two [football] clubs in the world playing each other at football and they draw and nothing happens. So you know you can also say it's a boring game. And then the next one the score is 5-4, with a lot of goals."
And it could be argued he has a point. Whilst the likes of Jacques Villeneuve and David Coulthard have bemoaned the lack of excitement, this season has had its moments.
Off the track there was the scandal surrounding the Bahrain Grand Prix, cancelled due to the worsening security situation following sectarian protests in the Gulf Kingdom. On the track there has been the excitement of Monaco, the increased aggression of Lewis Hamilton and, of course, Montreal, Vettel's only slip so far.
"I wanted to win that race and I was pushing very hard, you know the pace of Jenson," he said, referring to the rain-sodden Canadian Grand Prix that saw Jenson Button overtake Vettel on the last lap.
"I realized he was very quick and the only way was to push my maximum and, of course, if you push very hard ... when you're on the limit, you can do a mistake.
"Over the distance I think we did one mistake, the timing maybe wasn't perfect but, you know, that's life."
His focus is now on Sunday's race at Silverstone. Despite having the world at his feet, and all the temptations that being an F1 champion brings, he still shuns the glamorous life that many of his fellow drivers embrace.
"There are a lot of people around, a lot of girls around and a lot of parties," he said.
"I cannot afford to go on Saturday night for a couple of drinks because if I go to sleep late, I won't be fit the day after. You know sometimes you would love to go out and enjoy in some ways.
"But it's better to have a nice Sunday and have a better Sunday night."
Credit: CNN (www.cnn.com)
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