Vettel basks in title success
The German’s fifth win of the season saw him go top of the standings for the first time in 2010, beating pre-race title favourite Fernando Alonso by four points.
At 23 years and 135 days, Vettel beats the mark set by Lewis Hamilton – who finished second ahead of team-mate and outgoing world champion Jenson Button – by 166 days. Alonso trailed home a distant seventh having failed to recover from an early tyre change, which dropped him down the field, eventually finishing one position ahead of Mark Webber, who, disappointingly, never mounted a serious threat.
Vettel was clearly in tears on his slow-down lap as he attempted to speak to team principal Christian Horner over the in-car radio, revealing later that he was not certain of his title win for several seconds after crossing the finish line.
“I’m a bit speechless. I don’t know what you are supposed to say in this moment,” he said. “It has been an incredibly tough season physically, and mentally especially, but we have always believed in myself, my car, the team.
“I tried to do my own thing, knowing the only thing I could do was my best. I’ve only led the championship today. I didn’t know anything over the last 10 laps and in crossing the line my engineer came on and said ‘It’s looking good, we have to wait for the cars to finish.’
“I was wondering what he meant, but then he came back a few seconds later and screamed that I was world champion. It’s just amazing. I guess it will sink in when I finally go to sleep, but I think we will have daylight before that happens.”
Hamilton was the first to congratulate Vettel as they emerged from the cockpit of their cars. Out on the track, however, there was consternation when Alonso drew up alongside Vitaly Petrov as the Spaniard wagged his finger at the Renault driver having been held up by the Russian for around 40 laps.
Petrov was, however, perfectly within his rights to fight for his eventual sixth place, a result which may yet lead to him retaining his place for next season.
The start was dramatic, even if the action was nothing to do with the leading quintet. Nico Rosberg nudged Mercedes team-mate Michael Schumacher, and the impact was enough to spin the seven-times champion into oncoming traffic.
Force India’s Vitantonio Liuzzi, with nowhere to go, drove over the front of Schumacher’s left-front wheel, his front wing narrowly missing the German’s helmet. The incident prompted the introduction of the safety car, and, crucially, a flurry of pit stops.
Button got by Alonso at re-start, relegating the Ferrari man to fourth. Tyre issues then forced Webber to pit lane earlier than expected, but when Ferrari brought their lead challenger in to counter the move, it dropped Alonso behind a gaggle of cars, including those of Rosberg and Petrov who had pitted during the safety car period.
The Spaniard would have been tipped to ease by the Renault man, but his counterpart proved a resolute obstacle in both the race and the Alonso’s faltering title challenge.
"I will remember this year for a long time and despite the final result, I'm very proud of the job the team has done and our approach to the last part of the year,” Alonso said afterwards.
At the head of the field, Vettel held off a charge from Hamilton to take the chequered flag. The Briton eventually came home ten seconds behind the new champion and just in front of McLaren team-mate Button.
Rosberg claimed fourth ahead of the Renault pair of Robert Kubica and Petrov, with Alonso and Webber seventh and eighth respectively. Jaime Alguersuari (Toro Rosso) and Felipe Massa (Ferrari) completed the top ten.
* To learn more about Sebastian Vettel’s journey to title glory, read Niamh O’Mahony’s sports blog at irishexaminer.com.
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