Sebastian Vettel

Sebastian Vettel

Vettel in 2016
Born	(1987-07-03) 3 July 1987 Heppenheim, West Germany
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality	German
Car number	5
Entries	( starts)
Championships	4 (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013)
First entry	2007 United States Grand Prix
First win	2008 Italian Grand Prix
Last win	2017 Australian Grand Prix
Last entry	2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix
2016 position	4th (212 pts)

Sebastian Vettel (German pronunciation: [zeˈbasti̯an ˈfɛtl̩]; born 3 July 1987) is a German racing driver, currently driving in Formula One for Scuderia Ferrari. He is a four-time Formula One World Champion, having won the championship in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 with Red Bull Racing. He is among the most successful F1 drivers of all time. He is one of only four drivers to have won four or more drivers' titles. He is contracted to remain as a Formula One driver with Scuderia Ferrari until at least the end of 2017.

Vettel started his career in Formula One as a test driver for BMW Sauber and made his debut with the team at the 2007 United States Grand Prix, replacing the injured Robert Kubica. Later in the season, he signed with Toro Rosso and stayed with the team into 2008. He became the youngest race winner at the time when he took victory at the 2008 Italian Grand Prix. In his first year driving for Red Bull in 2009, Vettel finished the season as the youngest-ever World Drivers' Championship runner-up. The following year he went on to become the youngest driver ever to win the World Drivers' Championship, aged 23. In the same year he helped Red Bull win the team's first World Constructors' Championship. He followed up his first championship with three more titles, becoming the youngest double, triple and quadruple world champion in Formula One. The 2010 and 2012 titles were decided in the final round, in 2010 coming out on top over Fernando Alonso and Ferrari in a four-way title battle at Abu Dhabi, whilst in 2012 defeating Alonso and Ferrari again by three points. The 2011 and 2013 titles saw Vettel dominating the seasons and wrapping up the titles early.

Vettel left Red Bull Racing and ended his long-term association with the company after the 2014 season and signed a contract with Ferrari for 2015, after activating a clause to terminate his Red Bull contract early. After his winless 2014 season he returned to winning ways in his first Ferrari season, being the closest challenger to the dominant Mercedes cars and winning three races.

Vettel has held numerous other "youngest" Formula One records, among them: the youngest driver to have taken part in an official practice session of a Grand Prix (until Max Verstappen at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix), to score championship points (until Daniil Kvyat at the 2014 Australian Grand Prix), to lead a race (until Max Verstappen at the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix), to win a race (until Max Verstappen at the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix) and to secure pole position. He is also currently in fourth place among all time race winners.

Early and personal life

Vettel was born in Heppenheim, then West Germany, to Norbert and Heike Vettel. He has one younger brother, Fabian, and two older sisters: Melanie, a dental technician, and Stefanie, a physiotherapist for disabled children. Vettel suggested in an interview that he was terrible at school, but earned his Abitur at the Starkenburg Gymnasium high school in Heppenheim with a respectable grade. He has said that his childhood heroes were "The three Michaels" – Michael Schumacher, Michael Jordan, and Michael Jackson and mentioned that he wanted to be a singer like Michael Jackson, but realised that he could not as he did not have the voice. Vettel is also a fan of The Beatles, collecting several records, including Abbey Road and his favourite song being "Drive My Car". In an interview on Top Gear, Vettel stated that he was a fan of British comedy such as Little Britain and Monty Python's Life of Brian. Vettel lives in Thurgovia, Switzerland amongst other racing drivers and is a fan of German football team Eintracht Frankfurt. Vettel has described himself as competitive, private, and impatient. Vettel also appears in advertisements for Head & Shoulders. Vettel provided the voice of character Sebastian Schnell in the version of the movie Cars 2 dubbed for German-speaking audiences.

Vettel is in a relationship with Hanna Prater, a childhood friend. In January 2014, Vettel became a father for the first time with the birth of his daughter, Emilie. In September 2015, Vettel became a father for the second time with the birth of his second daughter, Matilda. In 2015, Forbes estimated that Vettel's annual income was $33 million. On the Formula One circuit, Kimi Räikkönen, his Ferrari teammate for 2015 to 2017, is a close friend. Vettel also shows to have a good friendship with fellow drivers such as Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher, Nico Rosberg with whom he repeatedly showcases a close, humorous friendship.

Early career

Junior series

Vettel started amateur karting at the young age of 3½ and began racing in karts series in 1995, at the age of eight. Having shown early talent, he was accepted into the Red Bull Junior Team at age 11 in 1998, and kept on winning various titles, such as the Junior Monaco Kart Cup in 2001. In 2003, he was promoted to open-wheel cars and won the 2004 German Formula BMW Championship with 18 victories from 20 races. Having impressed in his first season of auto racing in 2003, Vettel was given a chance by Derrick Walker to test a Reynard Motorsport Champ Car in a two-day private test at the Homestead road course.

In 2005 he drove for ASL Mucke Motorsport in the Formula 3 Euro Series. He was placed fifth in the final standings with 63 points, winning the year's top rookie honours. He tested the Williams FW27 Formula One automobile on 27 September as a reward for this Formula BMW success. He then went on to test for the BMW Sauber team. He drove for Racing Engineering in one race of the Spanish F3.

Vettel driving at a F3 Euroseries demonstration event in 2006

2006 became a busy year for the 18-year-old racing driver that included being promoted to test driver for Sauber in Formula One. Despite a competitive season with several victories, it did not yield any championship.

Vettel finished as runner-up in his second season in the F3 Euroseries, behind series leader and teammate Paul di Resta. He also made his debut in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series at Misano, where he was promoted to second, after the original winner Pastor Maldonado was disqualified. At the next round at Spa-Francorchamps, however, his finger was almost sliced off by flying débris in an accident, and he was expected to be out of racing for several weeks. Nevertheless, he managed to compete in the Ultimate Masters of F3 at Zandvoort the following weekend, finishing in sixth place. He also set the third-fastest lap time, and it surprised his ASM team boss Frédéric Vasseur. Vasseur said: "I was impressed for sure, because at the beginning of the week I was sure he wouldn't race! But he showed good pace from the first practice session. I can't imagine he's 100 per cent but at least we know we can be competitive in the next F3 Euroseries round at the Nürburgring next weekend – that's important."

Vettel competed in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series in 2007, and took his first win at the Nürburgring. He was leading the championship when he was called up to Formula One permanently. His seat was taken by Michael Ammermüller.

Formula One

Vettel during practice at the 2006 Brazilian Grand Prix for BMW Sauber

Vettel on his race debut at the 2007 United States Grand Prix

BMW Sauber (2006–2007)

2006

See also: 2006 Formula One season

Vettel became BMW Sauber's third driver at the 2006 Turkish Grand Prix, when former incumbent Robert Kubica was called up to replace Jacques Villeneuve for the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix.

On his testing debut, Vettel set the fastest time in the second Friday Free Practice before the race. At the time, he became both the youngest Formula One driver to participate in a Grand Prix weekend (aged 19 years and 53 days), and also collected his first fine for exceeding the pitlane speed limit on the way to the track for the first time.

In his second testing session in the 2006 Italian Grand Prix, he set the fastest time in both Friday practice sessions, a race weekend in which all the BMW cars were quick, with his predecessor Robert Kubica finishing on the podium in the race.

2007

See also: 2007 Formula One season

Vettel was confirmed as BMW's test driver for 2007. Following the serious crash of regular BMW driver Kubica at the Canadian Grand Prix, Vettel substituted for him at the United States Grand Prix. He started in seventh position on the grid, finishing in eighth position to take his first World Championship point and became the youngest driver at the time to score a point in Formula One (at the age of 19 years and 349 days), a record previously held by Jenson Button – who was 20 years and 67 days old when he finished sixth at the 2000 Brazilian Grand Prix.

Toro Rosso (2007–2008)

2007

On 31 July 2007, BMW released Vettel to join Red Bull's Scuderia Toro Rosso team, replacing Scott Speed as one of its drivers from the Hungarian Grand Prix onwards. He earned approximately US$165,000 for finishing the season with Toro Rosso. Before the race, it was also announced that Vettel would drive for Toro Rosso in 2008, alongside Sébastien Bourdais.

Vettel driving his Toro Rosso STR2 at the 2007 Brazilian Grand Prix

Vettel struggled for his first couple of races while cutting his teeth with his new team, but managed two impressive drives in his 5th and 6th drives for Toro Rosso, a team that was averaging a little worse than 14th place in the 2007 season before Vettel's arrival. In the rain-hit Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji, Vettel worked his way up to third, behind Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber, and seemed to be on course for not only his but also Toro Rosso's maiden podium finish. However, Vettel crashed into Webber under safety car conditions taking them both out of the race and prompting Webber to say to ITV reporter Louise Goodman "It's kids isn't it... kids with not enough experience – you do a good job and then they fuck it all up." Webber also specifically criticized Lewis Hamilton's erratic behaviour in contributing to the accident, describing his antics behind the safety car as "shit". Vettel was initially punished with a ten-place grid penalty for the following race, but this was lifted after a spectator video on YouTube showed the incident may have been caused by Hamilton's behaviour behind the safety car. Vettel bounced back to finish a career-best fourth a week later at the Chinese Grand Prix having started 17th on the grid while in mixed conditions. He collected five championship points, making it both his and Toro Rosso's best race result.

Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz stated his belief Vettel would be one of Formula One's big stars in the future. "Vettel is one of the young guys with extraordinary potential [...] He is fast, he is intelligent, and he is very interested in the technical side."

2008

See also: 2008 Formula One season

After four races of the 2008 season, Vettel was the only driver to have failed to finish a single race, having retired on the first lap in three of them. In each of these three instances, he was involved in accidents caused by other drivers, the other being an engine failure. However, at the fifth round at the Turkish Grand Prix, he finally saw the chequered flag, albeit finishing in 17th after qualifying 14th and suffering a puncture on the opening lap. In the next race at the Monaco Grand Prix, Vettel scored his first points of the season with a fifth-place finish, after qualifying 17th. He scored again at the Canadian Grand Prix fighting off Heikki Kovalainen in the last few laps for the final championship point, having started from pit lane. Vettel finished 12th in France, before retiring on lap one at the wet British Grand Prix after being clipped by David Coulthard and aquaplaned into the gravel trap along with Coulthard. He earned another point at the German Grand Prix, fending off Fernando Alonso and securing eighth after Jarno Trulli ran wide. Vettel retired in Hungary after his engine overheated during his first pit stop. He impressed many at the European Grand Prix by setting the fastest times in the first practice session and second qualifying session, before qualifying sixth on the grid. Vettel finished the race in sixth, two seconds behind Jarno Trulli. Toro Rosso's technical director Giorgio Ascanelli explained that something changed at the European Grand Prix in Valencia: "Suddenly Vettel understood something about how to drive an F1 car quickly. It made a huge difference – not only to the speed he could unlock, but also to his ability to do so consistently."

Vettel driving for Toro Rosso at the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix

At the 2008 Italian Grand Prix, Vettel became the youngest driver in history to win a Formula One Grand Prix. Aged 21 years and 74 days, Vettel broke the record set by Fernando Alonso at the 2003 Hungarian Grand Prix by 317 days when he won in wet conditions at Monza. Vettel led for the majority of the Grand Prix and crossed the finish line 12.5 seconds ahead of McLaren's Heikki Kovalainen. It was the first podium and win for his Toro Rosso team. Earlier in the weekend, he had already become the youngest polesitter, after setting the fastest times in both Q2 and Q3 qualifying stages, and his win also gave him the record of youngest podium finisher. Toro Rosso team boss Gerhard Berger said, "As he proved today, he can win races, but he's going to win world championships. He's a cool guy". Hamilton praised the German, stating that this victory showed "how good he is". The nature of the victory and the story of the 21-year-old's fledgling career led the German media to dub him "baby Schumi", although Vettel was quick to downplay the expectation the result had brought, particularly the comparison with the seven-time World Champion: "To compare me with Michael Schumacher is just a bit ridiculous... It will be difficult in normal conditions for us to repeat this achievement". He then went on to finish fifth in Singapore. In Japan, he finished sixth after being promoted from seventh after teammate Bourdais was penalised for contact with Felipe Massa.

In the Brazilian Grand Prix, after running as high as second in the race on a 3-stop strategy, Vettel overtook Lewis Hamilton in the rain for fifth place on the penultimate lap to contribute to a thrilling climax to the season. He nearly deprived the McLaren driver of the championship before Timo Glock slowed dramatically on the last lap (he was struggling with dry tyres in the ever-increasing rain) enabling both Vettel and Hamilton to pass him, earning Hamilton the title, and Vettel fourth place.

After the season had finished Vettel was named Rookie of the Year at the Autosport Awards.

Red Bull (2009–2014)

2009

See also: 2009 Formula One season

Vettel at the 2009 Japanese Grand Prix that he won

At the start of the 2009 season, Vettel replaced the retired David Coulthard at Red Bull Racing, and began strongly at the Australian Grand Prix, qualifying third and running in second for the majority of the race. However, a clash with Robert Kubica over second place on the third to last lap of the race forced both to retire. Vettel attempted to finish the race on three wheels behind the safety car to salvage some points, but eventually pulled off to the side. He thought that he would be able to attempt this because the yellow flag resulting from his incident forbids overtaking; instead he was given a ten-place grid penalty for the next race, the Malaysian Grand Prix, and his team was fined for instructing him to stay on track after the damage occurred. In Malaysia he qualified in third position, but was demoted down to 13th due to his ten-place grid drop. He spun out of the race while eighth, just before the race was stopped due to adverse weather conditions. However, in China he went on to take pole position, the first for the Red Bull Racing team. He went on to win the race ahead of teammate Mark Webber, again a first for his team, which scored its first victory and one-two finish in the same race. At the age of 21 years and 287 days, Vettel became the youngest Grand Prix driver in history to win for two different teams, having won the 2008 Italian Grand Prix for the Toro Rosso team.

In the Bahrain Grand Prix, Vettel qualified in third, and finished second behind Jenson Button in the race. In Spain, he qualified in second but finished the race in fourth, behind his teammate Webber who finished in third. Vettel won the British Grand Prix after claiming pole position in qualifying. At the German Grand Prix he qualified fourth and finished second, behind Webber, who won his first Grand Prix. At the Hungarian Grand Prix, Vettel qualified second after an eventful qualifying, but had to retire from the race on lap 30 after his car sustained damage from contact with Kimi Räikkönen's car on the first lap.

Vettel won the inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, finishing runner-up in the 2009 season

At the European Grand Prix, he qualified fourth but had to retire from the race with an engine failure. It was the second engine failure for Vettel during the weekend, and the RB5's reliability issues began to show. He finished third at Spa-Francorchamps, and struggled for pace at Monza, finishing 8th at a race he previously won. He qualified 2nd at Singapore, but was given a drive-though penalty for speeding in the pit lane and damaged the diffuser on a kerb, struggling to 4th. He subsequently won the Japanese Grand Prix from pole position, leading every lap and only being denied of the fastest lap by 0.002 seconds by teammate Mark Webber, who did so on the final lap. He would have to wait until the 2011 Indian Grand Prix until he finally achieved a Grand Slam.

At the Brazilian Grand Prix, Vettel qualified 16th in a rain-hit session, behind title rivals Button (14th) and Rubens Barrichello (1st), while his teammate Webber qualified second with Adrian Sutil in third. Vettel needed to score at least second place in the race to keep his title hopes alive. He finished fourth with Button behind, giving Button the Championship and moving Vettel up into second place. He officially claimed second place by winning the inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, again ahead of Webber with Button completing the podium. He also scored his third fastest lap of the year, drawing him level with teammate Webber. However, as Vettel had more second fastest laps, he won the 2009 DHL Fastest Lap Award.

On 21 August 2009 it was announced that Red Bull and Vettel had extended his contract until the end of the 2011 season with an option for 2012. The option was later taken up on 14 March 2011, as Vettel extended his contract with the team until the end of 2014.

2010

See also: 2010 Formula One season

Vettel driving for Red Bull Racing at the 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix, where he took the first pole position of the season

Vettel continued with Red Bull for 2010, and took the first pole position of the season at the Bahrain Grand Prix. Vettel went on to lead most of the race but a spark-plug failure meant that his lap times slowed down, and as a result the two Ferraris and the McLaren of Lewis Hamilton passed him. After a brief challenge from Rosberg he brought the car home in fourth.

At the Australian Grand Prix, Vettel was appointed as a director of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association. He took his second consecutive pole position in Australia, ahead of teammate Mark Webber, but spun off when leading the race, due to a loose wheel nut. In Malaysia, he took his first win of the 2010 season with Webber coming in second place, having passed both him and Nico Rosberg at turn one.

Vettel qualified on pole at China alongside Webber. At the start of the wet race Fernando Alonso jump-started and Vettel was passed by Webber, dropping back to third. The increasing rain forced Vettel and Webber to pit at the same time for intermediate tyres that wore out after only a few laps and dropped them back into the midfield. Vettel slowly climbed back up to finish sixth, ahead of Webber. In Spain, Vettel was outqualified by teammate Webber and claimed second on the grid. Despite having a major brake problem during the last eight laps, Vettel managed third place after Hamilton crashed on the penultimate lap.

In Monaco Vettel was again outqualified by Webber. In the race he passed Kubica at the start and stayed there for the remainder of the Grand Prix and made it a Red Bull 1–2. After the race, the two Red Bull drivers were equal on points in the Drivers' Championship, with Webber being a championship leader based on total wins. At the Turkish Grand Prix he qualified third and was running second behind Webber when he made a passing move on the Australian. The two collided, putting Vettel out of the race and dropping him to fifth in the Drivers' Championship, with neither driver accepting responsibility for causing the collision. He finished fourth at the Canadian Grand Prix, maintaining his position in the standings. He started the European Grand Prix in pole position and led from start to finish to score his second win of the season.

Vettel won from pole position at the 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and went on to win his first World Drivers' Championship title

At Silverstone, both Vettel and Webber's cars were fitted with a new design of front wing. Vettel's front wing was damaged in the third practice session, and Webber's sole surviving example was removed and given to Vettel. Vettel qualified in pole position ahead of his teammate, but suffered a puncture caused by driving wide off the track on the first lap of the race and fell to the tail of the field. He fought back to finish seventh while Webber took the victory. At the German Grand Prix he took pole by 0.002 seconds, and finished in third position in the race, behind the Ferraris of Alonso and Felipe Massa, after a poor start. Since Ferrari swapped positions between the drivers in an apparent team order Vettel could have been handed the win, but the FIA let the result stand, then legalized team orders again. He also finished third in Hungary after serving a drive-through penalty for exceeding ten lengths behind the previous car, teammate Webber, under neutralised safety car conditions. In Belgium, he had a tough race, hitting Button's car whilst attempting to pass, causing Button to retire. Vettel pitted and carried on, but then suffered a puncture whilst passing Liuzzi at the same place, completing a whole lap with a puncture. He eventually finished 15th, his lowest placing of the season (other than his retirements in Australia and Turkey). At Monza he finished fourth after an engine problem scare, and at the Singapore Grand Prix, Vettel qualified and finished second, sticking on Alonso's tail for most of the race, the entire weekend being very close between the two. He passed Button for fourth place in the championship. At the Japanese Grand Prix, he dominated all practice sessions bar one, as it was postponed after heavy rain. He qualified on pole ahead of teammate Webber and went on to win with a lights-to-flag victory. Aged 23 years and 98 days, Vettel became the youngest Grand Prix driver to win at the same track on two occasions, having also won the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka in 2009. At the first Korean Grand Prix, Vettel took pole and led the first 45 laps of the race before retiring with engine failure, handing victory to Alonso.

At the Brazilian Grand Prix, Vettel qualified second but took the lead at the first corner and led for the entire race to victory. With Webber taking second place, and Alonso finishing third, Vettel went into the final race of the season with a 15-point deficit to Alonso, and a 7-point gap to Webber. With the one-two finish in Brazil, Vettel and Webber secured Red Bull Racing's first Formula One World Constructors' Championship. He won the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix from pole again, to take the Drivers' Championship lead for the first time in his career and became the youngest world champion in the sport's history. Following John Surtees in the 1964 season and James Hunt in 1976, this was also only the third time in Formula One history when the World Champion had not been championship leader at any earlier point in the season.

2011

See also: 2011 Formula One season

Vettel won the 2011 Malaysian Grand Prix, which was his fourth consecutive victory

After the postponement of the Bahrain Grand Prix, Vettel started his title defence in style in the Australian Grand Prix with pole position and a victory of 22 seconds over title rival Lewis Hamilton, who was nursing home his broken McLaren. Vettel continued his title defence in the Malaysian Grand Prix, where he pipped Hamilton for pole position by a tenth of a second, and went on to win the race from Jenson Button. Vettel completed his third pole position of the season at the Chinese Grand Prix, and appeared to be in dominating form for the majority of the race. However, poor tyre management haunted him in the last several laps, possibly being related to his inability to properly communicate with his team, as his radio was broken. He finished the race second, his championship lead cut to 21 points over Hamilton after three races.

The Turkish Grand Prix started out poorly for Vettel, where he had very little practice time during the Friday free practice sessions, including a crash in the first session. Even with the limited practice, he claimed his fifth consecutive pole position and converted it into a win, extending his championship lead over Hamilton to 34 points. At the Spanish Grand Prix, his pole position streak ended as his KERS failed him during qualifying. His teammate Webber took pole, but Vettel went on to win the race by 0.6 seconds over Hamilton, with Hamilton chasing him down at the end on prime tyres, and Vettel having to deal with a frequently malfunctioning KERS. The following weekend, in the Monaco Grand Prix, he took pole with the second fastest qualifying time in Monaco's history. Vettel was leading the race with a 5-second gap over second-placed Button. Due to a radio malfunction, the Red Bull pit crew was not prepared for Vettel when he pitted. The net result was that the pitstop was slow, and that he was sent out on the wrong tyres, handing the lead to Button as well. Vettel switched to a one-stop strategy, and stuck with one set of soft tyres for 56 laps. He was caught by Alonso and Button as his tyres deteriorated, but neither were able to pass him on the narrow streets of the Monte-Carlo circuit. With a few laps remaining, the race was red-flagged after Vitaly Petrov required an ambulance after an accident. The suspended race allowed teams to change tyres and work on the cars, and when the race was restarted under the safety car, Vettel was able to retain the lead during the last few laps.

Vettel's win at the Monaco Grand Prix was his first win in the principality, and his fifth from the first six races of the season

In Canada, he took his sixth pole position in seven races ahead of Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa. Vettel kept his lead from the start of the race, and for the vast majority of the race he held on to it. The record six safety car periods due to the down-pouring rain and 2-hour race suspension profoundly hurt Vettel's chances of victory, however, as after every safety car restart, Vettel would lose the gap he had previously built up on the other drivers. With much fresher tyres, Button caught Vettel and began to pressure him in the last lap. Vettel slid on a damp part of the track at Turn 6, and Button used the opportunity to slip past him to take the victory. Vettel finished second, yet still extended his championship lead to 60 points ahead of Button.

At the European Grand Prix, the FIA began enforcing a controversial ban on engine mappings. It was believed by many in the press that this was an attempt by the FIA to thwart Vettel's domination of the season. The changes appeared to do little to hinder Vettel, as he took pole with the fastest qualifying lap in Valencia Street Circuit's history. He dominated the race with his first triple of 2011 with pole, fastest lap, and won his sixth race out of eight races. It was the first time in Formula One history where, in the first eight races, 1) a driver finished first in six or more races and 2) finished second or better in all 8 races.

Vettel took his ninth victory of the season at the Singapore Grand Prix after leading from lights to flag, leaving him within one point of his second World Championship

The second set of controversial mid-season changes were implemented at Silverstone, targeting the blown diffusers. Red Bull believed the changes cost them about half a second per lap. Webber just edged Vettel for pole position by 0.032 seconds in qualifying. On race day, Vettel made a better start, immediately took the lead and led the first half of the race. A delay at one of his pit stops allowed Alonso to pass him in the pit lane and dropped Vettel back to third, behind Hamilton. Despite a malfunctioning KERS unit, he was able to jump Hamilton in the stops and held off the faster Webber, who ignored a radio message from team principal Christian Horner to hold position, for second place, extending his lead in the championship.

Vettel's run of fourteen successive front-row starts and eleven successive top two finishes ended at his home race, where he qualified third and finished fourth. McLaren's mechanical grip outclassed Red Bull in the wet in Hungary, and despite leading into the first corner from pole, he was quickly passed by both Hamilton and Button. Vettel eventually finished second in the race, held in mixed conditions. In Belgium, Vettel qualified on pole and won the race, his seventh victory of the season and seventeenth of his career. In victory, Vettel extended his lead in the championship to 92 points and, even with seven races left, his tally of 259 points surpassed his own record (from 2010) for the highest number of championship points accumulated in a season. At the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, he took his tenth pole position of the year – joining Ayrton Senna as the only drivers to have taken ten pole positions in two separate seasons – and the 25th of his career, and eventually won the race after passing Alonso, who had overtaken Vettel at the start. Vettel led every lap from pole position in Singapore, despite a safety car period eliminating a 22-second lead that he had held. His ninth win of the season left only Jenson Button in championship contention, who was 124 points behind with five races remaining.

Vettel at the 2011 Japanese Grand Prix where, with four races remaining in the season, he became the youngest double World Drivers' Champion

Vettel arrived in Japan needing only a single championship point, tenth place, to secure his second championship. In qualifying, Vettel recorded his twelfth pole position of the season – his fifth in succession – edging Button by 0.009 seconds. In the race, Vettel held the lead until the second pit-stop phase, when Button used the undercut to get past. He remained second after a safety car restart, but because his tyres wore out not long after that, he slipped down to third behind Alonso. He tried to fight Alonso for the position, but after several unsuccessful passing attempts, his race engineer told him to hold position and defend his championship. This podium finish secured his second successive title with four races remaining, making him the youngest ever double world champion and also the youngest back-to-back champion, joining only eight other drivers who had won consecutive titles. In Korea, Vettel started second, but won the race – becoming the second driver to take at least ten wins in a season after Michael Schumacher – after overtaking Lewis Hamilton on the first lap, building a healthy gap for the rest of the race, and recording the fastest lap of the race on the final lap. He helped secure Red Bull's second successive Constructors' World Championship in the process. Vettel took his eleventh victory of the season in the inaugural Indian Grand Prix, leading every lap from pole position, as well as setting the race's fastest lap on the final lap, despite Red Bull having detuned his engine in an effort not to risk the race victory.

At the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Vettel took his fourteenth pole position of 2011 to equal the record of poles in a season set by Nigel Mansell in 1992. Vettel had a good start to maintain the lead by the first corner, but at the second corner, a right rear puncture saw him go sliding off the track. He returned to the pits, but suspension damage forced his first retirement since the 2010 Korean Grand Prix. Vettel then broke the record for the most poles in a season at the next round, the season finale in Brazil. He maintained his lead into the first corner but was slowed by gearbox trouble early in the race. He allowed teammate Webber to pass him as his problem worsened, but eventually finished second ahead of Button to complete a 1–2 sweep for the team upon Webber's only victory of the year. Vettel completed the year with 15 poles, 11 victories, and 17 podiums from 19 races; he also earned a record total of 392 points in the process.

2012

See also: 2012 Formula One season

Vettel driving for Red Bull Racing at the 2012 Malaysian Grand Prix

Vettel remained at Red Bull for the 2012 season, and was again partnered by Mark Webber. He scored a second-place finish at the opening race of the season in Australia. Vettel started fifth in Malaysia, promoted from sixth after Kimi Räikkönen suffered a five-place grid penalty. Vettel spent the majority of the rain-affected race in fourth place, but picked a puncture from a collision with the HRT of Narain Karthikeyan on lap 47. He dropped to twelfth after pitting to replace the tyre, and finished eleventh after Pastor Maldonado retired late in the race with an engine failure. This was Vettel's first finish outside the points since the 2010 Belgian Grand Prix; Karthikeyan was given a 20-second post-race penalty for his part in the collision, which dropped Karthikeyan from 21st to 22nd and last.

After the race, Vettel and Red Bull boss Christian Horner criticised Karthikeyan's driving, with Vettel calling Karthikeyan an "idiot", and a "cucumber". Karthikeyan hit back at Vettel, calling him a "cry-baby". Later, Karthikeyan decided to call a truce with Vettel, stating his respect for Vettel's abilities and saying "I think we have to deal with it in a mature way and forget about it." Vettel qualified eleventh for the Chinese Grand Prix; the first time he had qualified outside the top ten since the 2009 Brazilian Grand Prix, although he ran as high as 2nd with 7 laps remaining until tyre wear on a 2-stop strategy took its toll and he dropped to 5th by the flag.

Vettel took his first victory of 2012 in Bahrain

Vettel qualified in pole position for the first time in 2012 at the Bahrain Grand Prix. Vettel was able to lead for most of the race, despite coming under pressure from Kimi Räikkönen, and crossed the line in first place to take his first victory of the season; the result also saw Vettel go top of the drivers' standings for the first time in 2012. At the Spanish GP, he maintained his championship lead, albeit only on countback, after a 6th-place finish having started 7th following on from a qualifying session in which he did not set a time in Q3. Vettel received a drive-through penalty for failing to slow for yellow flags during the race as well as having to change his front wing as a result of debris from an incident involving Michael Schumacher and Bruno Senna. After an eventful race at Monaco, he placed fourth, gaining 5 places from his ninth-place grid position.

Vettel took his second victory of the 2012 season at the Singapore Grand Prix

Vettel claimed his 2nd pole position for the season in Canada, however he dropped to 3rd after the first pitstops and then trying to go the remaining distance of the same tyres, he fell back in the closing stages and had to make a late stop for new tyres. He eventually came 4th. At the following race in Valencia, he claimed his 33rd pole position, going 3rd equal with Jim Clark and Alain Prost in the all-time list. However joy turned to despair in the race as a 20-second lead in the first 20 laps was reduced to nothing by a safety car appearance. On the first lap of the restart, his car ground to a halt, with an alternator failure being the cause. Vettel would have taken the lead in the standings- instead, he fell back to 4th behind Alonso (who won), Hamilton and Webber.

At Silverstone, Vettel qualified 4th after a wet session which, at one point, had to be suspended for over 1 hour due to torrential rain. In the dry race he overcame a slow start, where he dropped to 5th, to finish 3rd behind Webber and Alonso. In Germany he started second, but before the third pit-stop, he was attacked by Hamilton, who wanted to unlap himself, lost some time, and was overtaken by Button after the pit-stop. On the penultimate lap he passed Button and finished second behind Alonso. After the race, however, the stewards found that Vettel was off the track when he overtook Button and so they awarded him a 20-second time penalty which dropped him back to fifth. At the following race in Hungary, Vettel finished 4th after starting 3rd. Then, at the Belgian Grand Prix, he fought back from a poor qualifying, where he was knocked out in Q2 to start 10th, and a poor start in which he had to avoid the big accident ahead of him. Having ended the first lap in 12th, he managed to finish 2nd. At Round 13 in Italy, Vettel started 5th and was running 4th until he forced Fernando Alonso onto the grass, for which he received a drive-through penalty, dropping him to 9th. Then, having recovered to 6th with 5 laps to go, the alternator on his car failed for the second time in the weekend. Vettel was classified 22nd, with championship leader Alonso coming 3rd and Hamilton winning.

After the summer break, the next race was the Singapore Grand Prix, where Vettel qualified 3rd. He overtook Pastor Maldonado at the start, before the leader Lewis Hamilton retired with a car failure. Vettel then kept the lead until the 2-hour race limit was reached. It was his first win in 10 races, ending his worst run since his maiden win (which came in his 22nd race). At Suzuka for the Japanese Grand Prix, Vettel took his 2nd career Grand Slam (Pole, Fastest Lap and lead every lap) and coupled with Alonso retiring on the first lap, he cut the gap down to just 4 points. On 14 October he won his third consecutive race at the Korean Grand Prix. He overtook his teammate Mark Webber, who took the pole, to finish the race ahead of him, making it a Red Bull one-two finish. South Korean "Gangnam Style" rapper PSY waved the chequered flag as Vettel crossed the finish line. With this win, Vettel took the lead in the overall championship from Ferrari's Fernando Alonso. The Indian Grand Prix brought another victory, with Vettel topping all 3 practice sessions before taking pole position and leading every lap of the race to a comfortable win, ahead of teammate Mark Webber in 3rd – who lost his 2nd place when a KERS failure slowed him down.

Vettel at the 2012 United States Grand Prix

Abu Dhabi presented one of Vettel's most controversial qualifying sessions of the season when, after setting the third fastest time in Q3, he was told to stop the car. A fuel pump issue was later found to be the source of this problem and the ensuing penalty meant Vettel was to start the race from last, but as Red Bull then decided to make changes to the car, he was forced to start from the pit lane. However, in the race, Vettel managed to fight his way back to 3rd place to complete the podium. After a podium in the US Grand Prix Vettel was well set up to win the championship in Brazil. Vettel started the race with a 13-point cushion against title contender Fernando Alonso. After a close eventful race full of spins, which included Vettel's opening lap incident with Bruno Senna, crashes and changing weather conditions, Vettel finished 6th while Alonso finished 2nd, resulting in Vettel winning the championship by three points. This was Vettel's third consecutive championship, and at age 25 he became the youngest ever triple world champion, beating Ayrton Senna's previous record. Senna won his third F1 world championship title in 1991 at age 31. Vettel also became the third driver to acquire three-consecutive championships, after Juan Manuel Fangio and Michael Schumacher.

2013

See also: 2013 Formula One season

Vettel (left) controversially passing teammate Mark Webber at the 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix, despite team orders to maintain position

Vettel started his fifth season with Red Bull Racing by qualifying on pole for the 2013 Australian Grand Prix, before going on to finish the race in third place, twenty-two seconds behind race winner Kimi Räikkönen. He took pole again for the Malaysian Grand Prix in dominant display of wet weather driving, lapping over 2.5 seconds faster than teammate Webber. He went on to win the race, though not without controversy, after Vettel ignored team orders not to pass teammate Mark Webber. Webber emerged from the pits a fraction of a second ahead of Vettel as they went side-by-side into the first corner. Although Red Bull told both drivers that they were to finish with Webber to take the win, after two laps Vettel eventually overtook Webber for the lead with eleven laps remaining in the race. Webber was furious after the race. Team principal Christian Horner, although unhappy with Vettel's actions, pointed out that Webber had defied team orders on several previous occasions, as recently as two races ago. Horner acknowledged that the already fragile relationship between the two drivers had further broken down as a result of the incident. Vettel apologised for his actions, claiming that he had not deliberately ignored the order despite the team's insistence that he had been made perfectly aware of the instruction to maintain his position. Vettel later recanted his apology, claiming that he was not sorry for winning and that if the situation presented itself again, he would have passed Webber in spite of the order, adding that he felt Webber did not deserve to win the race.

In the Chinese Grand Prix, Vettel qualified 9th, after not setting a time in Q3, before finishing 4th, setting fastest lap and crossing the line two-tenths behind 3rd placed Lewis Hamilton. Vettel won from second on the grid in Bahrain, passing Nico Rosberg in the opening laps. Vettel maintained the championship lead with 4th in Spain, and 2nd at the Monaco Grand Prix. He won in dominant fashion at Montreal, winning from pole position by 15 seconds and lapping everyone up to 5th, extending his lead to 36 points.

Vettel at the 2013 Belgian Grand Prix, where he took the first of nine consecutive victories

His lead was cut at the British Grand Prix as he was denied a likely win due to gearbox failure, but he bounced back to win his home race in Germany for the first time, despite pressure from Kimi Räikkönen and Romain Grosjean. In Hungary, Vettel had to settle for 3rd behind Hamilton and Räikkönen, but wins in Belgium (from 2nd on the grid), Italy, Singapore and Korea (all 3 from pole) put him 77 points clear with only 5 races to go. With grand slams at Singapore and Korea, he became only the third man after Alberto Ascari and Jim Clark to take consecutive grand slams. Vettel sealed his fourth world title at India on 27 October.

"It's very difficult for me personally, to receive boos, even though you haven't done anything wrong."

Sebastian Vettel, on being booed on the podium.

On several occasions during the season, spectators booed Vettel. Although the booing was widely condemned by fellow drivers, the media and others in the paddock, Vettel revealed that it had a negative impact on him.

Prior to the 2011 Japanese Grand Prix, Red Bull's advisor Helmut Marko expressed his wish to extend Vettel's contract for another two years to 2016. However, on 11 June 2013, Vettel agreed to a one-year contract extension with Red Bull until the end of the 2015 season.

2014

See also: 2014 Formula One season

Vettel at the 2014 Chinese Grand Prix

For the 2014 season and beyond, drivers picked a unique car number that they will use for the remainder of their Formula One career, Vettel chose the number five. However, as reigning World Drivers' Champion he carried number one throughout 2014. After having Mark Webber as a teammate for five years, Vettel's new teammate in 2014 was Australian Daniel Ricciardo, who was promoted from the Toro Rosso team.

After struggling with reliability issues throughout winter testing, the season did not start much better for Vettel. At the Australian Grand Prix, software issues meant Vettel qualified in twelfth position and forced him to retire from the race after just three laps. Reliability problems also forced Vettel to retire at the Monaco and Austrian Grands Prix. Vettel qualified on the front-row for the races in Malaysia, Great Britain, and Hungary, and finished on the podium in Malaysia, Canada, Singapore and Japan. On 4 October 2014, Red Bull Racing announced that Vettel would be leaving the team at the end of the 2014 season, one year before his contract was due to expire. After the Russian Grand Prix, he had been outqualified by a teammate over a season for the first time in his Formula One career. In addition to suffering reliability problems, throughout 2014 Vettel struggled to get to grips with the Red Bull RB10, and Pirelli's 2014 tyres. Vettel signed off the 2014 season, by becoming the first defending champion to fail to win a race in the following season since Jacques Villeneuve in 1998.

Ferrari (2015–)

Vettel during pre-season testing in Catalunya debuting for Ferrari

The next stage of my Formula 1 career will be spent with Scuderia Ferrari and for me that means the dream of a lifetime has come true. When I was a kid, Michael Schumacher in the red car was my greatest idol and now it's an incredible honour to finally get the chance to drive a Ferrari. I already got a small taste of what the Ferrari spirit means, when I took my first win at Monza in 2008, with an engine from the Prancing Horse built in Maranello. The Scuderia has a great tradition in this sport and I am extremely motivated to help the team get back to the top. I will put my heart and soul into making it happen.

Sebastian Vettel, on his lifelong dream of driving for Ferrari

Vettel mentioned he would like to drive for Ferrari at some point in his career and was rumoured to have a non-binding pre-contract, with options, to join them in 2014. Red Bull believed he would stay with the team for as long as they supplied a competitive car. His contract extension to the end of 2015 seemed to end any discussion that Vettel was about to make the Ferrari move.

On the day Vettel and Red Bull announced parting ways, team principal Christian Horner announced that Vettel was going to sign with Ferrari. From there it took from early October to 20 November for Ferrari to announce a three-year contract with Vettel. At the same time, Ferrari announced that Vettel's long-time championship rival Fernando Alonso would be departing the team at the end of the season; meaning Vettel would partner Kimi Räikkönen at the team. Alonso's departure two years before his contract expiry opened the Ferrari door for Vettel.

Vettel was denied an early release from his Red Bull contract to test the 2014 Ferrari car in Abu Dhabi post-race. In spite of this Vettel technically breached his contract being at the test with Ferrari – although not driving the car but Red Bull did not enforce any sanctions. Vettel instead made his first appearance at the Ferrari factory over the weekend of 29–30 November, completing nearly 100 laps around the test track of Fiorano in the 2012 car as well as performing simulator work and completing his first official interview as a Ferrari driver. According to Ferrari's official website, Vettel did however try the simulated 2014 car in the team's simulator program.

2015

See also: 2015 Formula One season

Vettel at the 2015 Malaysian Grand Prix, where he took his maiden win for Ferrari after two races.

Vettel made his Ferrari début by finishing third in the Australian Grand Prix after overtaking Felipe Massa for the position during the pit stop window. The previous day he had narrowly outqualified teammate Kimi Räikkönen for fourth on the grid. Vettel followed that up with winning the Malaysian Grand Prix, his first race win for over a year and the first win for Ferrari for almost two years. It was also his 40th Grand Prix win, putting him one win behind Ayrton Senna, the 3rd-placed driver on the all-time list. After the win, an emotional Vettel paid tribute to Michael Schumacher, saying that his hero's achievements with Ferrari made the first win all the more special. Vettel also stated his goal was to try to win the championship. Mercedes' executive director Toto Wolff admitted at the same time that Vettel was a title contender, saying that Ferrari's recovery over the winter was 'incredible'. Vettel ran both Mercedes cars close for the first half of the race in China, but eventually had to settle for third – his third successive podium – which was a result that both Vettel and the team admitted was always the most likely on that particular occasion.

Vettel was involved in a minor tangle with Sergio Pérez during practice for the Bahrain Grand Prix, damaging his front wing coming out of the pits. Vettel claimed the impact happened because of a brake issue that failed to slow the car down saying 'something broke on the front right' on the team radio. In spite of his claims, the incident was investigated by the race stewards. Both Vettel and Pérez were cleared of any wrongdoing later that evening, and so escaped any penalties. The rest of the weekend was mixed for Vettel, who qualified on the front row, but had several issues and off-track escapades during the race before being stuck behind Valtteri Bottas' Williams and having to settle for fifth. Given that he had qualified on the front row and that teammate Räikkönen was second, the result was somewhat underwhelming, and he dropped to third place in the championship as a result. Vettel commented that he lost his rhythm during the race and did not have enough confidence in the rear end of the car, but nevertheless remained positive about the performance potential of the car. Before his front wing damage, Vettel had twice overtaken Nico Rosberg for second place during pitstops, only to immediately be pegged back. Vettel was in second for a long spell during the Spanish Grand Prix but due to a change of pit stop strategy, Lewis Hamilton got past and pulled away, leaving Vettel in third at the end of the race. He finished second in Monaco, having run very close to eventual winner Rosberg for most parts of the race. Mercedes made a strategic error in bringing dominant leader Hamilton in for new tyres at the late safety car, placing him right behind Vettel. The duel that followed made Vettel fall back from Rosberg, but he managed to hold off Hamilton to finish an unlikely second. In Canada, Vettel got his lowest qualifying position of the season, qualifying in 18th, and then received a five place grid penalty for overtaking under red flags in practice 3 that morning. The race, however, was a success, as he finished 5th behind teammate Räikkönen.

Vettel during qualifying for the 2015 Hungarian Grand Prix, a race he would go on to win.

Following a 4th in Austria and 3rd at Silverstone that appeared to edge Vettel further away from a title challenge, he rebounded with a commanding win in the Hungarian Grand Prix, after a superb start from 3rd on the grid, which saw him slice past both Mercedes cars and retain the lead throughout. The win was Vettel's first ever at the Hungaroring and equalled Ayrton Senna's total of 41 Formula One victories. It was dedicated to Jules Bianchi who died the week prior from injuries sustained in 2014. At the halfway point of the season, Vettel was 42 points behind championship leader Hamilton, and said the team aimed to make what was seen as 'impossible' possible during the second half of the season. He however accepted a lot of work was needed to be done to catch up. Vettel looked set for third in Belgium after a long stint on the supposedly conservative medium tyre when his right rear blew at high speed on the penultimate lap, likely ending any title chances given Hamilton won. After the race he went on a furious rant about control tyre manufacturer Pirelli and the 'unacceptable' and 'unsafe' tyres that could have caused him serious injury had the explosion occurred in the Eau Rouge corner just before where it actually occurred and since it was the second such blowout at high speed during the weekend (the first befell Nico Rosberg during practice). Vettel was also unhappy with Pirelli's suggestion that the failures were due to the drivers going wide picking up debris, saying he never did.

Vettel at the 2015 Singapore Grand Prix, where he took his third victory of the season

Vettel came home second in the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, the first race for him with Ferrari at the team's home soil. Amid a contract dispute regarding the venue's future Vettel once again went on the rampage and said that the race could not be lost and would 'rip the heart out of Formula One' if it did. He also stated that he regarded his first podium for Ferrari at Monza as 'the best second place of his life'. Vettel then took his first Ferrari pole at the Singapore Grand Prix. It was the team's first pole for three years, and first dry pole since at the same venue five years earlier. Vettel was 0.543 seconds ahead of Daniel Ricciardo in second. He went on to win the race from Ricciardo, thus surpassing Ayrton Senna's victory count for his 42nd career win, moving him into third on the all-time list. With championship leader Hamilton retiring, Vettel closed to within 49 points with seven races remaining. The title challenge once again diminished in the next race in Japan. Vettel did however score his tenth podium finish of the year, finishing third behind Hamilton and Rosberg at a track with significantly different attributes to Singapore. Vettel scored another second place and with fastest lap of race at Sochi moving him to second place in Drivers' Championship following Nico Rosberg's retirement in the early parts of the race. In the United States Vettel started from 13th due to an engine change penalty, but still charged his way to a podium, even challenging Rosberg for second on the final lap.

The third last race of the season in Mexico was a major disappointment, with Vettel being punted softly in the rear tyre by Daniel Ricciardo on the first corner entry, suffering a puncture. Having had strong pace all weekend, Vettel's chances were all but gone and in a recovery attempt he first spun and then crashed out, losing second in the championship to Rosberg. The penultimate race in Brazil was a strong weekend for Vettel, who finished far ahead of teammate Räikkönen on track with both having clean races. He was not far off the Mercedes cars but had to settle for third. The final race in Abu Dhabi saw Vettel finish fourth following an error in qualifying that set him far down on the grid. His recovery pace was impressive, albeit remaining one pit stop behind Räikkönen in third due to lost time early on. He ended the season in third place, and with three wins and 13 podiums, he declared the season as a 'miracle.' This was in the light of how far behind the team had been the year before, yet being a race winner on merit during the course of the season.

2016

See also: 2016 Formula One season

Vettel driving for Ferrari at the 2016 Monaco Grand Prix

Vettel started his season by finishing third in the Australian Grand Prix, which saw the race being red-flagged after an accident involving Fernando Alonso and Esteban Gutiérrez. Vettel's participation in the Bahrain Grand Prix came to an end without even being started as his car broke down on formation lap. At the Chinese Grand Prix, Vettel collided with teammate Räikkönen on the first lap, but both were able to continue. Despite falling down the order as a result of the first-lap incident, Vettel recovered to finish the race second. He had initially blamed Daniil Kvyat for his first-lap collision with Räikkönen, arguing that he had to take action to avoid a collision with Kvyat after Kvyat overtook him in the first corners of the race for third place, even accusing him of being a "madman" and describing Kvyat's overtaking maneuver as "suicidal", but later going on to describe the events of the first lap as a "racing incident". At the Russian Grand Prix, Vettel retired on the first lap after two consecutive collisions with Red Bull driver Daniil Kvyat. Kvyat was handed a ten-second stop-go penalty and three penalty points on his licence. Vettel came third in the Spanish Grand Prix following Max Verstappen's maiden win in Formula One. He came fourth in the Monaco Grand Prix and second in the Canadian Grand Prix, following Lewis Hamilton's first two wins of the season. At the Mexican Grand Prix, Vettel attempted to overtake Verstappen, but after Verstappen ran off track and rejoined ahead of him, Vettel launched a foul-mouthed tirade at Verstappen and race director Charlie Whiting, for which he later apologised. Vettel then blocked Ricciardo by moving in the braking zone. Vettel was given a ten-second penalty and two points on his license under a dangerous driving rule clarified only a week before the race. Vettel didn't manage to win in 2016, but finished the season with seven podiums and 212 points, in fourth place.

2017

See also: 2017 Formula One season

Vettel during pre-season testing for Ferrari in 2017

Vettel began his third season at Ferrari with victory in Australia, his first win in 18 months, finishing nearly ten seconds clear of Lewis Hamilton. Having started second, Vettel kept pace with pole-sitter Hamilton, who pitted after 17 laps, before re-joining behind Max Verstappen. With Hamilton being told by his engineer that it was "critical" to pass Verstappen, Vettel stayed out six laps longer. Vettel built up just enough of a gap to pit and re-join ahead of Verstappen, but more crucially, Hamilton. By the time Verstappen pitted a few laps later, Vettel had already pulled around five seconds clear of Hamilton and from there on, comfortably controlled the race and cruised to his 43rd career victory.

Comparison with team-mates

During the course of his Formula One career, season-by-season Vettel has beaten nearly all his teammates in the drivers' championship. The exception was in 2014 when Daniel Ricciardo beat him by 71 points.

Race of Champions

Vettel competed in the 2007 Race of Champions at Wembley Stadium, representing the German team alongside Michael Schumacher. Vettel and Schumacher won the Nations' Cup Title, after exciting finals. Vettel had to beat two RoC champions, Heikki Kovalainen and Marcus Grönholm, after Schumacher stalled his car. Vettel lost the individual competition however, in first heat, in his second battle against Kovalainen.

Vettel also competed in the 2008 Race of Champions, alongside Michael Schumacher. Once again they won the Nations' Cup Title after a close final against Scandinavia. In the Drivers' Cup, Vettel beat Troy Bayliss in Round One, but lost to Sébastien Loeb in the quarter-finals. Again Vettel teamed up with Michael Schumacher for the 2009 Race of Champions, which they went on to win in a run-off against the Great Britain team of Jenson Button and Andy Priaulx. In the 2010 edition, on home ground in Düsseldorf, Vettel again teamed up with Schumacher to win the fourth consecutive Nations Cup. In the Drivers' Cup, Vettel was eliminated in the semi-finals by Filipe Albuquerque, who went on to win the event.

In 2011, Vettel and Schumacher completed their fifth consecutive Nations Cup win, beating the Nordic team of Tom Kristensen and Juho Hänninen 2–0 in the final. In the semi-finals, Vettel had to beat both Andy Priaulx and Jenson Button, after Schumacher lost to Button. The year after, Vettel and Schumacher won their sixth Nations Cup title by defeating the French team of Romain Grosjean and Sébastien Ogier 2–0 in the final. Vettel returned to the ROC in 2015, teaming up with fellow F1 driver Nico Hülkenberg to represent Germany in the Nations' Cup. In 2015, Vettel won his very first Race of Champions beating Kristensen in the final. En route to the final of the Nations Cup, Vettel was able to gain some form of revenge over his former teammate Daniel Ricciardo, defeating him at the quarter final stage as Germany knocked out Australia.

Helmet design

Vettel's passion for different helmet designs started at a young age, and from his early days in karting, he has worked with helmet designer Jens Munser. At age eight, Vettel wanted the crab from The Little Mermaid, who was also called Sebastian, on his helmet. Vettel's original helmet, in Formula One, like most Red Bull-backed drivers, was heavily influenced by the energy drink company logo. New to Vettel's helmet since the start of 2008 has been the incorporation of the red cross shape of the Kreis Bergstraße coat of arms on the front, just underneath the visor, in honour of the region of his birthplace, Heppenheim.

After switching to Red Bull in 2009, Vettel started regularly using a variety of new helmet designs. Some designs were small changes to his original Red Bull design, while others are completely original designs, such as the one he used at the 2010 Japanese Grand Prix: Vettel had a special white-red helmet design, with black kanji and hiragana for "gives you wings". Several of his helmet designs also featured his team members. At the 2012 Italian Grand Prix, Vettel celebrated his 50th helmet design with a 'rusty' matte look and 50 tallies, indicating his 50 helmet designs in Formula One. By the end of the 2013 Formula One season, Vettel had used 76 different helmets throughout his career. "I have a quirk" he admits.

Vettel started his 2013 campaign with a new design in honour of Felix Baumgartner, for his world record Red Bull Stratos space jump in October 2012.

Helmet manufacturer Arai have stated Vettel 'retires' a helmet design after each win, although he does not need to win in order to sport a new design.

After moving to the Ferrari team, prior to the start of the 2015 season Vettel said that he will no longer change helmet designs so often and after choosing a new design, having had a Red Bull design since he was 12, will try to stick to one design for the year, which was also enforced by a FIA rule banning 'significant' helmet changes in-season. His new helmet design is white with the German national flag running from front to back from the middle to the viewer's left hand side and his permanent Formula One start number 5 on the top.

Car names

Inspired by American bomber pilots in World War II, Vettel has made it a tradition to name his cars. Vettel invites his team members to dinner when they arrive for the first race of the season and shares what the new car will be named. "It's important to have a close relationship with a car. Like a ship, a car should be named after a girl as it's sexy." The car he drove for his first full season in 2008, the Toro Rosso STR3, was named Julie, followed by Kate and Kate's Dirty Sister (2009), Luscious Liz and Randy Mandy (2010), Kinky Kylie (2011), Abbey (2012), and Hungry Heidi (2013). Vettel's car for 2014, the Red Bull RB10, was baptized "Suzie". Vettel continued this tradition with Ferrari and christened his 2015 Ferrari SF15-T Eva. For the 2016 season Vettel and his mechanics decided to name his Ferrari SF16-H Margherita. For 2017, Vettel decided to christen his Ferrari SF70H "Gina".

Comparison to Michael Schumacher

Vettel's unexpected win at the 2008 Italian Grand Prix led the media to dub him the "Baby Schumi", "New Schumacher". He was not just dubbed this for his nationality, but also because of his driving style, his concentration and the hands-on role he plays behind the scenes with his team of engineers. Vettel played down the comparison stating he wanted to be the "New Vettel".

Vettel and Michael Schumacher both racing at the 2011 Japanese Grand Prix, where Vettel won his second world championship title

Nevertheless, the similarities are marked. Like Schumacher, Vettel grew up in a small town with an everyday background—Schumacher's father a bricklayer and Vettel's a carpenter. Both had their first taste of racing at the Kerpen karting track near Cologne, not far from the Nürburgring. Vettel began driving in his garden lapping the garden many times, not even stopping to eat or shower, before he could legally take to the roads, and said his passion for cars was nurtured by watching Schumacher compete.

After winning his first championship in 2010, and being hailed as the 'Next Schumacher', Vettel has stated he did not want to aim for Schumacher's record after learning how hard it was to get one championship under his belt, though he would like to win more. Each driver began to dominate the sport in the season after winning the championship. They both clinched their second successive titles before the seasons were finished (unlike their previous year), and in only their fourth full seasons. Both drivers became the youngest ever double world champions at the time, by doing this.

In 2011, Pirelli's Paul Hembery was impressed when Vettel was the only driver to take the time to visit the factory and talk to the tyre manufacturer to gain a better insight and improve their racing. The "only other driver that asks us a lot of questions" is Michael Schumacher. Hembery "found that interesting. It is like seeing the master and the protégé at work."

After Schumacher was severely injured in a skiing accident in late 2013, Vettel was on hand to collect a German Millennium-Bambi award for his life achievements, on his behalf, along with Schumacher's long-term manager Sabine Kehm a year later. Vettel also made an emotional speech commemorating Schumacher's achievements in the sport. The two of them had got to know each other well from racing together in Formula One and in the Race of Champions and are – along with Nico Rosberg – the only German Formula One title winners.

In 2014, Vettel cited Schumacher as one of his inspirations in becoming a Ferrari driver from 2015 saying; "When I was a kid, Michael Schumacher in the red car was my greatest idol and now it's an incredible honour to finally get the chance to drive a Ferrari." In his second race with Ferrari, Vettel became a race winner for the team. This was interestingly enough at the age of 27, exactly the same age as Schumacher winning his first race with the team. Additionally, both Schumacher and Vettel finished 3rd in the Drivers' Championship in their debut seasons with Ferrari, scoring 3 wins each.

Honours

Vettel was named Rookie of the year at the annual Autosport Awards in 2008. In 2009, Vettel was awarded the Lorenzo Bandini Trophy, for achievements in the 2008 season. In the year 2010, he was voted German Sportspersonality of the Year (Sportler des Jahres). In the same year, he won the International Racing Driver category at the Autosport Awards for the first time, and has since won this award for three successive years (2010–2013). In January 2012, Vettel was honoured with the illustrious Grands Prix de l'Academie des Sports 2011 for being the "Double consecutive F1 World Champion at the age of twenty four – winner of eleven Grands Prix out of nineteen", and in the following month, he was further honoured with the highest sports award in Germany, the Silberne Lorbeerblatt – Silver Laurel Leaf – in recognition of his multiple world titles and his exemplary character. He was also voted F1 driver of the year in 2009, 2011 and 2013 by the F1 team principals for the annual secret poll, initiated by Autosport magazine, while being voted runner-up in 2010 and 2012. He additionally won the DHL Fastest Lap Award in 2009, 2012 and 2013. He became European Sportsperson of the Year by Pap in consecutive years (2012 and 2013) and also by UEPS in 2010. In 2014, he was named Sportsman of the year at the Laureus World Sports Award held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Red Bull Racing sponsor Infiniti released a Sebastian Vettel edition of the Infiniti FX SUV for 2012. It features increased engine power, revised bodywork and lower suspension than the standard model.

Racing record

Career summary

Year	Season	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	F/Laps	Podiums	Points	Position
2003	Formula BMW ADAC	Eifelland Racing	19	5	5	4	12	216	2nd
2004	Formula BMW ADAC	ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg	20	18	14	13	20	387	1st
2005	Formula 3 Euro Series	ASL Mücke Motorsport	20	0	0	1	6	63	5th
	Masters of Formula 3		1	0	0	0	0	N/A	11th
	Spanish Formula Three Championship	Racing Engineering	1	0	0	0	1	8	15th
	Macau Grand Prix	ASM F3	1	0	0	0	1	N/A	3rd
	Formula One	BMW Williams F1 Team	Test driver
2006	Formula 3 Euro Series	ASM Formule 3	20	4	1	5	9	75	2nd
	Masters of Formula 3		1	0	0	0	0	N/A	6th
	Formula Renault 3.5 Series	Carlin Motorsport	3	1	1	0	2	28	15th
	Macau Grand Prix		1	0	0	0	0	N/A	23rd
	Formula One	BMW Sauber F1 Team	Test driver
2007	Formula Renault 3.5 Series	Carlin Motorsport	7	1	1	1	4	74	5th
	Formula One	BMW Sauber F1 Team	1	0	0	0	0	6	14th
		Scuderia Toro Rosso	7	0	0	0	0
2008	Formula One	Scuderia Toro Rosso	18	1	1	0	1	35	8th
2009	Formula One	Red Bull Racing	17	4	4	3	8	84	2nd
2010	Formula One	Red Bull Racing	19	5	10	3	10	256	1st
2011	Formula One	Red Bull Racing	19	11	15	3	17	392	1st
2012	Formula One	Red Bull Racing	20	5	6	6	10	281	1st
2013	Formula One	Infiniti Red Bull Racing	19	13	9	7	16	397	1st
2014	Formula One	Infiniti Red Bull Racing	19	0	0	2	4	167	5th
2015	Formula One	Scuderia Ferrari	19	3	1	1	13	278	3rd
2016	Formula One	Scuderia Ferrari	21	0	0	3	7	212	4th
2017	Formula One	Scuderia Ferrari	1	1	0	0	1	25*	1st*

* Season still in progress.

Complete Formula 3 Euro Series results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	DC	Points
2005	ASL Mücke Motorsport	Dallara F305/011	Mercedes	HOC 1 15	HOC 2 5	PAU 1 7	PAU 2 11	SPA 1 DSQ	SPA 2 13	MON 1 18	MON 2 17	OSC 1 5	OSC 2 5	NOR 1 2	NOR 2 4	NÜR 1 11	NÜR 2 2	ZAN 1 2	ZAN 2 2	LAU 1 3	LAU 2 15	HOC 1 13	HOC 2 3	5th	57
2006	ASM Formule 3	Dallara F305/059	Mercedes	HOC 1 5	HOC 2 1	LAU 1 3	LAU 2 6	OSC 1 5	OSC 2 14	BRH 1 2	BRH 2 7	NOR 1 2	NOR 2 Ret	NÜR 1 1	NÜR 2 1	ZAN 1 24	ZAN 2 2	CAT 1 1	CAT 2 Ret	LMS 1 9	LMS 2 9	HOC 1 3	HOC 2 12	2nd	75

Complete Formula Renault 3.5 Series results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	DC	Points
2006	Carlin Motorsport	ZOL 1	ZOL 2	MON 1	IST 1	IST 2	MIS 1 2	MIS 2 1	SPA 1 Ret	SPA 2 DNS	NÜR 1	NÜR 2	DON 1	DON 2	LMS 1	LMS 2	CAT 1	CAT 2	15th	28
2007	Carlin Motorsport	MNZ 1 5	MNZ 2 3	NÜR 1 1	NÜR 2 6	MON 1 2	HUN 1 4	HUN 2 3	SPA 1	SPA 2	DON 1	DON 2	MAG 1	MAG 2	EST 1	EST 2	CAT 1	CAT 2	5th	74

Complete Formula One results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	WDC	Points
2006	BMW Sauber F1 Team	BMW Sauber F1.06	BMW P86 2.4 V8	BHR	MAL	AUS	SMR	EUR	ESP	MON	GBR	CAN	USA	FRA	GER	HUN	TUR TD	ITA TD	CHN TD	JPN TD	BRA TD				–	–
2007	BMW Sauber F1 Team	BMW Sauber F1.07	BMW P86/7 2.4 V8	AUS TD	MAL TD	BHR	ESP	MON	CAN	USA 8	FRA	GBR	EUR												14th	6
	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Toro Rosso STR2	Ferrari 056 2.4 V8											HUN 16	TUR 19	ITA 18	BEL Ret	JPN Ret	CHN 4	BRA Ret
2008	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Toro Rosso STR2B	Ferrari 056 2.4 V8	AUS Ret	MAL Ret	BHR Ret	ESP Ret	TUR 17																	8th	35
		Toro Rosso STR3	Ferrari 056 2.4 V8						MON 5	CAN 8	FRA 12	GBR Ret	GER 8	HUN Ret	EUR 6	BEL 5	ITA 1	SIN 5	JPN 6	CHN 9	BRA 4
2009	Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB5	Renault RS27-2009 2.4 V8	AUS 13†	MAL 15†	CHN 1	BHR 2	ESP 4	MON Ret	TUR 3	GBR 1	GER 2	HUN Ret	EUR Ret	BEL 3	ITA 8	SIN 4	JPN 1	BRA 4	ABU 1					2nd	84
2010	Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB6	Renault RS27-2010 2.4 V8	BHR 4	AUS Ret	MAL 1	CHN 6	ESP 3	MON 2	TUR Ret	CAN 4	EUR 1	GBR 7	GER 3	HUN 3	BEL 15	ITA 4	SIN 2	JPN 1	KOR Ret	BRA 1	ABU 1			1st	256
2011	Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB7	Renault RS27-2011 2.4 V8	AUS 1	MAL 1	CHN 2	TUR 1	ESP 1	MON 1	CAN 2	EUR 1	GBR 2	GER 4	HUN 2	BEL 1	ITA 1	SIN 1	JPN 3	KOR 1	IND 1	ABU Ret	BRA 2			1st	392
2012	Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB8	Renault RS27-2012 2.4 V8	AUS 2	MAL 11	CHN 5	BHR 1	ESP 6	MON 4	CAN 4	EUR Ret	GBR 3	GER 5	HUN 4	BEL 2	ITA 22†	SIN 1	JPN 1	KOR 1	IND 1	ABU 3	USA 2	BRA 6		1st	281
2013	Infiniti Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB9	Renault RS27-2013 2.4 V8	AUS 3	MAL 1	CHN 4	BHR 1	ESP 4	MON 2	CAN 1	GBR Ret	GER 1	HUN 3	BEL 1	ITA 1	SIN 1	KOR 1	JPN 1	IND 1	ABU 1	USA 1	BRA 1			1st	397
2014	Infiniti Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB10	Renault Energy F1‑2014 1.6 V6 t	AUS Ret	MAL 3	BHR 6	CHN 5	ESP 4	MON Ret	CAN 3	AUT Ret	GBR 5	GER 4	HUN 7	BEL 5	ITA 6	SIN 2	JPN 3	RUS 8	USA 7	BRA 5	ABU 8			5th	167
2015	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari SF15-T	Ferrari 060 1.6 V6 t	AUS 3	MAL 1	CHN 3	BHR 5	ESP 3	MON 2	CAN 5	AUT 4	GBR 3	HUN 1	BEL 12†	ITA 2	SIN 1	JPN 3	RUS 2	USA 3	MEX Ret	BRA 3	ABU 4			3rd	278
2016	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari SF16-H	Ferrari 061 1.6 V6 t	AUS 3	BHR DNS	CHN 2	RUS Ret	ESP 3	MON 4	CAN 2	EUR 2	AUT Ret	GBR 9	HUN 4	GER 5	BEL 6	ITA 3	SIN 5	MAL Ret	JPN 4	USA 4	MEX 5	BRA 5	ABU 3	4th	212
2017	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari SF70H	Ferrari 062 1.6 V6 t	AUS 1	CHN	BHR	RUS	ESP	MON	CAN	AZE	AUT	GBR	HUN	BEL	ITA	SIN	MAL	JPN	USA	MEX	BRA	ABU		1st*	25*

* Season still in progress.
^† Did not finish, but was classified as he had completed more than 90% of the race distance.

Formula One records

Vettel holds the following Formula One records:

Record		Achieved
Most championship points earned in a season	397	2013
Most podium finishes in a season	17	2011
Most wins in a season	13	2013
Most pole positions in a season	15	2011
Most laps led in a season	739	2011
Most consecutive wins	9	2013 Belgian Grand Prix – 2013 Brazilian Grand Prix
Most consecutive Grand Slams	2	2013 Singapore Grand Prix and 2013 Korean Grand Prix
Most wins from pole position in a season	9	2011
Youngest Grand Prix pole position winner	21 years, 72 days	2008 Italian Grand Prix (13 September 2008)
Youngest driver to score a double (pole position and race win)	21 years, 73 days	2008 Italian Grand Prix (14 September 2008)
Youngest driver to score a triple (pole position, race win, and fastest lap)	21 years, 353 days	2009 British Grand Prix (21 June 2009)
Youngest driver to score a grand slam (pole position, win, fastest lap, and led every lap)	24 years, 119 days	2011 Indian Grand Prix (30 October 2011)
Youngest Formula One World Drivers' Champion	23 years, 135 days	2010 season (14 November 2010)
Youngest World Drivers' Championship runner-up	22 years, 121 days	2009 season (1 November 2009)
Shortest time elapsed before gaining a penalty	6 seconds	2006 Turkish Grand Prix (25 August 2006) (6 seconds into his career, for speeding in the pit lane)

Footnotes

External links

• Official website
• Sebastian Vettel at IMDb
• Profile – from BBC F1
• Sebastian Vettel career summary at DriverDB.com
• Ferrari profile