FIA Thursday press conference - Abu Dhabi

DRIVERS - Valtteri Bottas (Williams), Romain Grosjean (Lotus), Adrian Sutil (Force India), Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing), Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q: Sebastian, your fourth world title of course. Tell us about the last four days. What have you been doing, how have you celebrated and what has the reaction been like?
Sebastian Vettel: Well, the reaction has been very positive. Obviously great relief when I crossed the line on Sunday, a great feeling. Sunday night, obviously the whole team still had to do the pack-up, but we had a little bit of fun in the hotel bar - quite spontaneous. Obviously, there’s not a lot of time between the race in India and the race here, so the team is very busy. So we couldn’t go completely made, but I had a time on Sunday night and then I had two days at home before coming here, again fairly quiet, not very spectacular. I just enjoyed the peace at home. I had some time for myself, back with my girlfriend as well. So, fairly quiet.

Q: Probably history will remember this achievement as you in a strong team beating a very strong field of drivers - looking at the gentlemen sitting around you here. Is that how you see it?
SV: I think that’s the way it always has been. When Lewis won his title in 2008 he was with a strong team facing strong drivers, same for Fernando in 2005 and 2006, so yeah, even 20 or 30 years ago it has always been the name of the game. That’s how people remember the past and one day will remember what we are doing now.

Q: Fernando, runner-up again. So hard to hit the sweet spot in Formula One isn’t it? How far off championship level do you feel your group is?
Fernando Alonso: I think we need to be realistic, knowing that we didn’t have the chance this year to fight for the championship. In the beginning of the year we were a little bit closer but then we were not quick enough and we are fighting now for other targets, which is the Constructors’ Championship and second place in the Drivers’ [Championship] as well, which was not the main priority when we started the season but still a good target to achieve and a good thing for the team, to help them. We’ll see, I think we need to keep very focused in the remaining races and try to do our best and obviously with half of our mind thinking of 2014 because we are competitive people, we want to win. This year it was not possible but next year we start from zero.

Q: How has your relationship with the team evolved over the course of the year, particularly in terms of steering a course for the future?
FA: It’s fantastic. Obviously, every weekend I repeat the same thing. So I guess in Austin on Thursday the first question in the press conference will be how is my relationship with the team…

Q: The question was how has it evolved?
FA: It was perfect, it’s perfect and it will be perfect.

Q:Lewis, coming to you. You didn’t perhaps expect to challenge for the title this year but can you talk about the level of the challenge coming from Sebastian and Red Bull and how you take the fight to them from here?
Lewis Hamilton: They’ve done an incredible job for some time now, so you know, they’ve raised the bar and everyone just needs to work harder. Us, as a team, we’re working as hard as we can to really put the energy into next year and hope that we can compete with them. That’s ultimately what I’d love to do and ultimately what the team desires too. That’s what the dream is. There’s a long steep curve for us to climb or hill for us to climb for next year but it’s more of a level starting ground for everyone and you can either get it right or wrong. Hopefully we’re on the right side.

Q: Racing drivers always move on very quickly and I wonder if mentally you’re already in 2014.
LH: No, no. I’m still trying to… this year hasn’t been perfect for me and I’m always trying to learn and improve. There are lots of areas that can always be improved on, from myself and from the team, and we’re just working on those because we don’t want to carry the negatives of anything we have into next year.

Q: Romain, really strong run of form at the moment. Was India your best performance yet in Formula One, do you think? How much more is there to come from you?
Romain Grosjean: Hopefully two more places! It was certainly one of our best races. We misjudged our level of performance on the Saturday and we took the right decision about the strategy, how to go for the race. It was clearly not an easy one as I really had to first make the option tyre last and then try to make the prime tyre last for 47 laps. There were some quick cars around me, especially behind me, and yeah, just try to take care as much as we can of our tyres and do good driving. But I think Japan was a pretty good race. We had certainly a fantastic start and led the race from there, which was somehow easy to control in the first part. I think Red Bull was just a little bit too quick behind but when you watch the gap with Fernando who was P4, it was quite big, so I think those last four races have been pretty good: trying to improve myself every time, car is getting there and clearly the blue cars are still a little bit quicker than we are - but we try to push them as much as we can.

Q: Let’s cut to the chase: you’re a completely different racing driver from 12 months ago. What’s the key to the turnaround do you think?
RG: I don’t think there is any particular key to be honest. We like to put some things are changes but to me the work started a year ago and I’m improving myself day after day - or I’m trying to. The start of the season was poor. It’s a bit of a shame when we look at what we are capable to do right now but then since we put back the car in place it has been getting better and better. I was a bit unlucky before Germany and then Germany things turn out to be well together and from there we had very, very good races and the car is doing well. Hopefully it’s going to be the case until the end of the season.

Q: Adrian, strong drive in India, bold strategy. How important was it to stem the recent tide of Sauber getting closer and closer to you? And how much confidence has that given the team going forward now for the rest of the year?
Adrian Sutil: Well it was an important race for us, of course. It was our home grand prix and we wanted to show that we’re still able to be in the top ten. The last couple of races were a bit more difficult to score the points but we recovered and we did what we could to make a good result. We risked a little bit with the strategy - where we had both cars on a different strategy. I was on a one-stop - more risky - but almost the same outcome. Eighth and ninth position was almost the maximum we could achieve. Six points as a team, now 23 points ahead of Sauber, which is quite a good gap. It’s not over yet, we have to push on, but I think quite comfortable. It’s very important for us to save this sixth position in the championship, looking to next year of course, as a team. But I think, yeah, nice to have recovered a bit. Now we focus on what we have and try to optimise the package and do similar results in the next couple of races.

Q: Looking from the outside it seems that the tyre change mid-season didn’t really help your team particularly. What do you feel about that?
AS: Yes, it’s true. It’s one reason. We were a bit slower after that change but also we decided to stop the development very early in the season, so we had no parts on the car for the last six months or so. It’s quite a long time. I think it just hit us: from the tyre; from the development. Also the strategies in the race were more equal for everyone. Normally we were able to save one pitstop just because our tyre life was much better to others. After the tyre change that was different. But also we messed up a little bit the setup in the last races. We tried to somehow go back where we were but with a package where we just couldn’t make it. We tried different setups and it almost just slowed us down even more. We got problems, we made mistakes as the driver because the car was so difficult to drive. So, in India was said “we stop it, we take what we’ve got,” and that was the key for the points.

Q: Valtteri, been obviously a difficult, challenging year for you. What sort of shape are Williams in going forward?
Valtteri BottAS: Yeah, it’s been a challenging year. We’ve been learning a lot the whole year as a team. It’s been very tough. So we’re definitely I think going in a good direction, we’re now very focussed for next year. What I’ve seen at the factory, the working at the factory is changing. We’ve got some new people and I’ve already seen some good things. I really think the future of Williams will be much better than what we’ve seen this year.

Q: Not too many rumours about you, does that indicate that you’re staying put for next year?
VB: I think Claire Williams is tomorrow in the press conference so maybe you can ask her.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Joy Chakravarty- Sport 360) Seb, considering that the big prize is already yours, how will you motivate yourself to win over the next three races, and if you win on Sunday, will it be one of your greatest challenges, when you win with just about nothing to gain from the season, at least?
SV: Well, I don’t think we approach the weekend as if there’s nothing to gain. I think we - as a fact - we love what we’re doing. We enjoy the challenge and that’s why there’s no question as to why we are here and what we have to do. We want to race, race the others as hard as possible. If we have a chance, we want to win. As I said, I had some quiet days at home which was good, to sober up after India and get ready for here.

Q: (Khodr Rawi - Autosport Middle East) Sebastian, after winning so many races and four consecutive championships, do you think it will be harder again for you to lose?
SV: To be honest, I’m not getting in the car and thinking that there’s a guarantee that we will do well. Maybe that’s a little bit the impression that you get from the outside; obviously since the summer break we’ve won all the races but we come here and there’s absolutely no guarantee that we will do well, so we have to give it everything we have. Yes, we have a strong package so I think we have reason to be confident. I need the team, I think the team needs Mark and myself to push the car to the limit and to get some good results. There’s no guarantee for what we’ve been doing the last couple of races to make it last.

Q: (Heikki Kulta - Turun Sanomat) Valtteri, last four qualifyings you have managed to beat your team mate. Have you found something new in your one lap performance?
VB: The whole season I’ve been learning a lot and there are little things you’re picking up all the time. In qualifying, it’s been very tight this year - it’s always like that - and every hundredth counts. I think after the August break, for sure I’ve also improved in qualifying. I think I can now maybe get a bit more out of the car more consistently than before. I feel more confident all the time, so maybe we can see that in the results.

Q: (Paolo Ianieri - La Gazzetta dello Sport) Lewis, we heard yesterday some declaration from Dieter Mateschitz saying that Red Bull has been working hard on the development for this season but also trying many new parts that they will use in 2014; about 50 percent of that will be on next year’s car. How is the situation at Mercedes? Have you been trying the same path or also working on trying to fight with Ferrari for second place in the Constructors’ series?
LH: Probably not being doing as much as it sounds as they have been doing, in terms of developing for next year, but I think that a lot of the stuff that you do develop on this year’s car, upgrades that we do bring to this year’s hopefully will have an effect on next year’s car. It’s kinda of similar but some teams obviously can turn their focus a little bit earlier and some a little bit later, but hopefully, ultimately, we’ll still be competitive next year with these guys.

Q: (Frederic Ferret - L’Equipe) To Romain, Sebastian and Fernando: what do you think of Kimi as a man and as a driver?
RG: As a man, I would say yeah, Kimi basically I don’t know him. He is with me as he is with you. As a driver, he’s a very good driver and he has been, until recently, a very good teammate. He’s a quicker driver, he’s a consistent driver and to me, having him to learn (from) and to improve myself has been pretty good. But yeah, I don’t see him in different clothes to the ones we’re wearing right now.

SV: Well, I think I have huge respect for the fact that he loves what he’s doing, he loves motor racing, any form of it. Obviously, I think Formula One gives him a lot of satisfaction to drive a Formula One car. He doesn’t like the rest of it so much. On a personal level, he does talk to me. I don’t know what I do differently. He’s one of the most straightforward guys I’ve met so far and I respect a lot that he has always been very honest. Since I came into Formula One, he was ready to help, even gave me a lift a couple of times early on. I get along with him.

FA: Personally, I cannot say anything because I do not know him enough to speak about him personally. As a driver, he’s a great champion, great talent, very very fast. He likes what he’s doing. That’s the best thing.

(Source: F1.COM)

The 3rd day in Dubai

In my last post I said that I was planning to visit the Dubai Autodrome in Dubai's Motorcity.

It's a track that hosts an A1 Grand Prix every year. The Autodrome was also going to host winter testings for Formula One in 2014 but at the end Yas Marina got the honours.

I went there yesterday but it was closed and looked kind of spooky if you ask me.

So that plan kind of failed but anyways I took these pictures from the outside:

On the other side of the road I saw another track where people were driving go-karts.

I took several pictures but I can post those some other time when I get back to Europe.

After all of this I was a bit disapointed that I couldn't get inside the Autodrome area. So I jumped in a cab and went to Dubai Mall (the biggest shopping mall in the world).

At the mall I saw a big screen saying that Romain Grosjean is going to be there at 6:00PM.

The time was 6:45. Just my luck! So I couldn't visit the Autodrome and now this..

I continued to walk through the mall and stopped when I saw a small stage. There was a guard all by himself clearly waiting for something to happen. I asked him if there was anything going on and he told me that Lewis Hamilton is coming to the mall in 30 minutes.

It was going to be a short interview and then they had this Blackberry thing where people could send their questions to Lewis with their mobilephones.

Of course I waited the 30 minutes and I was standing almost at the front. Here's a picture:

Lewis also took a couple of pictures of the crowd, so if you see a picture like that on his twitter it is possible that I am in that picture.

I filmed the whole thing with my Canon 600D in FullHD. The footage is quite long so I can't post it right now from the hotel. I will do that later when I get back home and maybe edit it a little as well.

So that was it for today and I'll get back to you tomorrow with new updates from Dubai.

FIA press conference schedule - Abu Dhabi

Facing the media in Abu Dhabi on Thursday will be the man who has just won the world title, two former champions who pushed him all the way, and three drivers who each aspire to be a champion. And on Friday it is the turn of senior team personnel, including McLaren’s Martin Whitmarsh and Toro Rosso’s Franz Tost. The line-ups in full...

Thursday, October 31, 1500 hours local time (1100 GMT)
Fernando Alonso (Ferrari), Valtteri Bottas (Williams), Romain Grosjean (Lotus), Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), Adrian Sutil (Force India), Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull).

Friday, November 1, 1900 hours local time (1500 GMT)
Cyril Abiteboul (Caterham), John Booth (Marussia), Paul Hembery (Pirelli), Franz Tost (Toro Rosso), Claire Williams (Williams), Martin Whitmarsh (McLaren).

The status in Dubai less than a week before the GP

I'm about 50 miles from the Yas Marina track right now so I thought there would be some kind of billboards or commercials regarding F1, but I haven't seen anything yet. It's almost like nobody even cares about the GP.

The only thing I saw at the hotel was a group of Russians that had Ferrari caps on and they were talking something about Formula One. OK so I'm not the only one looking forward to the GP weekend.

At the supermarket there was a big cardboard Kimi Räikkönen behind the Burn energy drinks which was kind of funny.

At the mall I saw a miniature of Alonso and his Ferrari. A girl asked me if I needed any assistance so I asked if they had a Ferrari with Felipe Massa as well? She looked at me with big eyes and didn't know what I was talking about. I asked if they had a driver with a different helmet or just this one type? She continued to look at me like I was some kind of an idiot.

Later I went to another store and when I was paying for my shoppings I saw somebody familiar. At first I just looked at the guy and thought "Where have I seen this man before? Oh yes.. on TV with a Lotus shirt on. It's Gerard Lopez!" My wife was not impressed at all but I sure as hell was!

Gerard Lopez at a press conference (not from Dubai).

If I have time I will later visit the Dubai Autodrome. The Formula One management were planning to use the track for winter testing in 2014 but they desided to use the Yas Marina track instead.

I'll post some pictures here on the blog if I ever get there.

The Dubai Autodrome

The 2013 Abu Dhabi GP preview

I am now in Dubai waiting for the next GP in Abu Dhabi. It's about 50 miles away so I can take a bus or maybe a taxi cause it's so cheap here. Well at least cheaper than Finland or Scandinavia where almost everything is expensive.

The weather is very hot over here so the Abu Dhabi GP is again going to be driven in hot conditions until the sun sets. The last time I was there it got a bit cold in the evening because of the wind.

The Yas Marina track has hosted the Abu Dhabi GP 3 times in it's history so it's quite new. The facilities are one of the best in the world at least for me as a spectator. It is the only GP that has daylight and dark in the same race.

In 2010 Sebastian Vettel won his first world championship when Alonso couldn't get pass Vitaly Petrov. It was one of the most moving moments of Vettel's career when he cried on the podium.

After winning his first championship in 2010.

In 2011 he had already won the championship when the Formula One circus returned to Abu Dhabi. That race he retired right after the start and the whole crowd in Abu Dhabi cheered. The sound was quite loud, trust me, I was there.

In 2012 Sebastian started from the back of the grid but managed to get 3rd place. Alonso was second and Kimi Räikkönen took the maiden victory for the new Team Lotus. Everybody remembers the classic radio conversations between Kimi and Alan Permane? (the same man who cursed at him in India).

Here is a video with those radio conversations:

They made t-shirts of Kimi's comments. Damn! I should have bought a shirt like that.. I don't think they sell those anymore.

This year Vettel has secured the championship again but I don't think it will hurt his motivation.

Now it's time for my guesses:

Pole position: Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes

Race:

1. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull
2. Kimi Räikkönen, Lotus
3. Romain Grosjean, Lotus

Fastest lap: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull

Surprise: I don't know why I again got a feeling that Valtteri Bottas is about to do something fantastic. If he let's me down this time I will shut my mouth about him until he really accomplishes something.

I'll try to get as many pictures as possible from the GP weekend. I'll keep you all posted ;)

FIA post-race press conference - India

Drivers: 1 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing), 2 - Nico Rosberg (Mercedes), 3 - Romain Grosjean (Lotus)

PODIUM INTERVIEWS

(Conducted by David Coulthard)

Q: Sebastian, tell us your emotions from this victory.
Sebastian Vettel: First of all I would love to say thank you to the crowd. Unbelievable reception today. It’s a shame we are not racing here next year. I’m speechless David, I don’t know. I crossed the line, I was empty. I took ages thinking about something to say. It’s one of these moments you wish to say so many things but you can’t. Phenomenal season. The spirit inside the team is so strong that… I said it on the radio, it gives me so much power that, it’s a pleasure to jump in the car and go out for the guys and just try to give it all I have. The car was phenomenal today. It was phenomenal all season to be honest. I couldn’t ask for more.

Q: I think the crowd here probably enjoyed your little celebration before coming up to the podium. Had you thought about that or was that just purely instinctive reaction?
SV: No, I haven’t really thought about it. Rocky, my engineer called for the usual procedure but I said “yeah, not this time,” and there’s so many people here on the main grandstand that I had to do it. Usually we are not allowed to – but it felt so right at that time. I want to say a big thank you to the team, to all the people that were behind us. For sure it was not an easy season, even if people from the outside get the idea that we had it in our hands for quite a while, the last couple of races. But I think it was a difficult one all in all. Very difficult one for me personally. To receive boos, even though you haven’t done anything wrong, to overcome that and to give the right answer on the track and finally get the acceptance that I think we’re all looking for as racing drivers… it makes me very proud to join people like Prost, Fangio and Michael is unbelievable.

Q: Nico, that was a good day in the office.
Nico RosbeRG: Yeah, I’m pleased. The start was a bit difficult, dropping behind Massa. He was definitely a lot slower. I gave it a go on one lap but I couldn’t make it happen and he passed me back on the exit. And then the team did a fantastic strategy. I managed to get by him like that and, yeah, second place, I’m pleased with that. The car was working well today. Important for us to have a normal weekend, so a lot of points and giving Ferrari a run for their money in the Constructors’. That’s the aim for us now.

Q: Just a quick word on your compatriot, your fellow German here.
NR: Yeah, fantastic. He’s done an amazing job this year and deserves to be World Champion. We’re going to give it all over the winter to be a massive challenge next year.

Q: Romain, fantastic drive from 17th place. Did you really believe you could be on the podium today?
RG: Not at all. I would not have bet a penny on me being on the podium today. But the car came back how it was on Friday. The race pace was really there. We did a very brave strategy – as we did yesterday. I think it was not the time to go safe and it paid off. We’re back on the podium it’s quite amazing from where we started. The race was alright. I tried to go through the field. It was tough until the end. I didn’t know when the tyres were going to go off but the team did fantastic and very proud to be here.

Q: We saw some very close racing between yourself and Kimi Räikkönen. Tell us a little bit about that battle – we heard some of the radio transmission.
RG: Yeah, well, Kimi was in a difficult situation. I went for the outside and he didn’t see that point, so I wasn’t… I knew I had to be careful to my engine, I knew Massa had much fresher tyres behind so I didn’t want to lose time. I lost a little bit of time – but never mind. We are here on the podium and scored good points for the team and we still have a very strong car for the upcoming races.

Q: Sebastian, I know you’ve said you’re speechless and can’t find the words to describe the emotions of this moment – but please try one more time. As you stand here away from your racing car, how do you feel?
SV: I miss it! How do I feel? I’m overwhelmed. I don’t know what to say. I think it’s one of the best days of my life so far. When I was small… I always try to think back and think back where you started. Formula One was so far away. To race against these drivers, to race in Formula One was so far away. There have been so many people that I have to thank along the way from go-karting, junior formula categories, up to now, that have been teaching me a lot. I’ve always tried to listen and learn and it’s incredible to race some of the best drivers in the world, that Formula One ever had. I think it’s a very strong field and to come out on top of them… As I said, I think the spirit in the team is fantastic and to go for numbers and statistics that we have done in the last four years is unbelievable. I don’t feel old – I’m getting older but I think I’m not that old yet and to achieve that in such a short amount of time is very difficult to grasp. Maybe in ten years’ time. I’m trying very hard to come to the level I am now and maybe then I’m a little bit better in understanding what we have done so far.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

(for Nico Rosberg and Romain Grosjean)

Q: (Srinivasan Kannan – Mail Today) From where you qualified and where you finished eventually, how happy are you?
RG: Well, I think very, very happy. I honestly thought in seventeenth I had not a very big hope of this. The best strategy, computer thing that we had was P4 but that was taking that we had a very good start and we were just behind the Force India on the first lap so that was P13 or something like that and everything was going as planned. We did not have a very good start. I lost quite a lot of time behind Gutiérrez in the middle of the race which was quite… yeah, defensive, let’s put it that way. And then I didn’t know how the tyres were. So, being third today, I wouldn’t have bet a peanut on it. And it’s just great. I think the karma was good today.

Q: (Shridhar Potdar – Sakal Media) We saw you hold up Vettel on the podium – how does his achievement motivate for you as opponent and a contemporary?
NR: It doesn’t. I look at myself. I congratulate him, they do a fantastic job – but it’s not like it motivates me. I look at my own thing and try to do with my own team the best possible job. Of course trying to beat them because Sebastian has been the guy to beat in the last four years so our target is – well was this year to beat them but that didn’t quite work out – and next year it will be to beat whoever is our fiercest competitor. Very likely they’re going to be up the front again next year but I’m confident that we can be strong too and I really look forward to that.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

(for Sebastian Vettel)

Q: (Srinivasan Kannan - Mail Today) There was something unusual we saw at the end of the race: you got out of the car, almost kneeled, almost kissing in front of the car. What was that?
SV: It’s just an appreciation for the car, for the team. It’s pretty special. We work so hard all year to try and make that car faster, as simple as that. The guys are pushing, you could argue that it’s the fifth season with this generation of cars. Next year it will be a new generation, but you still see issues that we have. Unfortunately Mark had a problem with the alternator, similar to last year. Out of precaution, I wasn’t allowed to use the drinks bottle in the race, we switched the KERS off, we did everything to try and save energy at the end. So the cars are built on the limit, even if you think it’s season number five, with the same – in a way – the same kind of car. The fact that the car lasts, the work that the mechanics put into the car. It’s just an appreciation. I think it’s a team effort at the end of the day. I spoke to the guys yesterday night... surely you could argue that I have an important job when I’m out there driving the car, no doubt, I’m aware of that but I’m not selfish, I’m not taking all the credit myself. I’m very thankful for what these guys are doing. If you look at their pay check at the end of the month, you’d be surprised if you could do the amount of hours that they do. I think it’s better to work at McDonalds than to do what they do! It’s one hundred percent commitment. They love their job, they love the fact that they are working on a Formula One car and get to see technology like that. I think at the end of the day we could... it’s rockets in a way. It’s a shame, in a way, that with modern circuits people don’t get the excitement of the speeds that close any more, but I think for safety reasons there’s no doubt... you don’t want to go back to where we’ve been in the past, so I think the sport has progressed but for sure you lose some of the excitement but I think for racing fans, such as the mechanics, it’s still the same. It was just a gesture of saying thank you.

Q: (Lokendra Pratap Sahi – The Telegraph) Seb, congratulations, would you say this has been amongst your most or probably the most emotional day, as an F1 driver?
SV: In a way, we saw that one coming. Last year was very special. If you look at the race last year, Brazil, it was... if you tried to write a story like that you can’t because you can’t be creative enough. Maybe this year the difference is that it happens in a place like this. What I want to say is that I would actually love to take the time out and travel India, travel around here, because I think this country has the possibility to teach you so much. The majority of people are very poor, if you compare the living standards to Europe. I think it’s within human nature that you always find something to complain about. Being German, maybe it’s in my roots to find something to complain about but you come here, the majority of people have a very difficult life you would say, but they are very happy. Obviously we don’t get to see much because it’s an isolated world, we are here in the paddock so if you get to see a little bit of the surroundings, it’s quite frightening sometimes to see the circumstances people have to live in, but the big lesson is that they are happy. It was a difficult emotion to cross the line and to feel happy all of a sudden because you’re in a rhythm, you know what you’re doing, you have a certain routine. Yes, I was very nervous before the race but I am all the time, I am nervous, usually the last hour of my sleep from Saturday to Sunday is quite poor because I’m looking forward to the race, I’m having all sorts of scenarios in my head. I think it takes time to understand what happened but I think it is also a special place to win at and yeah, when my engineer called for the usual procedure - parc ferme, park the car - I said to myself I don’t care, I go there, the crowd was great in the main grandstand and I’ll have some fun there which I enjoyed a lot.

Q: (Aditya Iyer – The India Express) Sebastian, firstly congratulations. I was just curious to know, when you were growing up, watching Formula One, did you ever root for the underdog, did you ever want the guy finishing behind Schumacher to win, as a fan?
SV: I was never imagining myself to... what were we dreaming about when we were young boys? To be honest with you, when I started karting, I was doing the free practice, I was interested in the result, knowing if I was quick or not, I wanted to know, and after that I went to the sand and played with toy cars. We played hide and seek... it was a very nice time, to be honest. I had a lot of friends at the go-kart track, at the age of seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, when it was really about just growing up and having a hobby, you know? My friends at school went to play football, I joined them, I wasn’t very good. I already didn’t like losing at the time so yeah, it was a very nice time. It’s a lot of work, a lot of hours you put in, but I have to thank my parents in a way because they never put pressure on me. I understood it was very serious, I understand that they... maybe I understand now better than back then, but I understood that they spent a lot of time with me, sacrificed their lives in a way but we had a good time as a family together. Yeah, even if I wouldn’t be here in Formula One now and successful somewhere else, I don’t know, studying and having a normal job, I would still look back and say it was a nice time we spent together as a family and we would still talk about it every second or third dinner, because they are nice memories that we have. So when I was a child, I wasn’t really... of course, it was a dream to race in Formula One but I think it’s wrong to say it was a target. Later on, when I was 15/16, yes, I had a target but now, looking back, it was very difficult to grasp.

Q: (Saptarshi Shukla – Autocar India) Congratulations Sebastian, incidentally, I was at your hotel last evening and I saw you come in at nine at night which was six hours after qualifying finished. Is it normal or are you as diligent at any other weekend? SV: I think I spend a lot of time here at the track, looking at stuff, writing my reports and trying to give feedback but also to be honest, last night I had dinner here at the circuit. Many times people complain about the paddock and the people; to be honest with you, I’m not like that, I enjoy being here and spending time with people that you know. I had an interesting discussion last night with a journalist. I like the paddock, it’s not like a prison to me. People say when you cross the entrance it’s like being in a circus but I think it’s what you make of the circus also. If you come in with a negative mindset then for sure you will have a bad time. This morning, when I looked at the car and also yesterday to be honest, I looked at it and it’s a small piece of kit. It’s not very big. A truck is bigger, any truck you can buy on the road is bigger but imagine the speed this car can travel with you behind the wheel. It’s amazing. I just appreciate that fact, you know. Whether you finish first, second, 15th or last, it doesn’t really matter, but I think it’s something unique, that we get to feel, we get to enjoy. I appreciate that and hopefully this kind of feeling never changes.

Q: (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) First, being Italian, I apologise for all the boos that you got because I think they’re quite shameful and since they were coming a lot from Ferrari fans, I think it was not very much deserved. Second, Fangio...
SV: Yes, but to be honest with you, I’m not blaming the Ferrari fans. I tried to make the example, unfortunately nowadays the world is ticking so quickly that people are not always listening exactly to what I’m saying or what I’m trying to say. I don’t blame the people that booed, you know. If I go to the football stadium, for example, I cheer for the home team. The first moment you maybe don’t appreciate the outside or the away team to score a goal, the guy who actually scored a goal you don’t appreciate him being an amazing player and you might boo because other people boo. So in that regard, I think I know how to put it but like I said, obviously it doesn’t feel great but if you have a love for.. for example for Ferrari or McLaren... I had actually one guy writing a letter after Singapore. He apologised because he was in the crowd and he was booing and he apologised that he was booing, it was the wrong thing to do. I think if people think about it they understand but in the heat of the moment, you know, there’s nobody really to blame. Somebody starts, some people join in, others don’t. We are fans of the sport and if some people have a passion for Ferrari, which they might have for good reason, they’ve been around for quite a while, they don’t like it if somebody else wins. It’s not necessarily my fault. I think I’m mature enough to understand that.

Q: (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) My question actually was another one, because it was just four names: Fangio, Schumacher, Prost, Vettel.
SV: It’s very difficult to, to understand. Put it this way, I was watching TV, I was watching Formula One when Fernando started to win races and now I’m racing Fernando, he’s been my toughest opponent for the last couple of years. I think he’s extremely talented, very gifted behind the wheel, for sure. He’s Spanish, he’s very passionate, one way and the other. Now, to race people like him, race people like Lewis who I think has an amazing level of natural talent, to race people like Mark who I rate the same way, like Nico who I think is underestimated. A lot of guys, you know: Kimi, Jenson. To win four titles, I don’t know, it’s just a big number, you know? Four. Titles. Fangio put the number of five titles, everybody appreciated him as the best driver in the world. Michael came along a couple of years later or... couple of years! Quite many years later. Different time, different era of the sport. Don’t get me wrong, I’m just talking as a fan of the sport, you know? Yes, he had a very dominant car but he created that at Ferrari, you know? He was working very hard, arguably harder than everybody else. He had some tough challenges coming in and going out: people like Montoya, David, Kimi, Fernando. It’s incredible that one guy managed to actually score more championships than this guy did. Unfortunately Fangio passed away but when you speak to true legends of the sport, in my opinion, like Stirling Moss, they actually have the guts to say that... this guy was better than me, he deserved to win and Stirling Moss for sure was not a... he finished twice, I don’t know how many times, three/four times in the championship? To join people like that: Michael, Fangio, Prost is very difficult to put into perspective. I’m way too young to understand what it means. I might be sixty one day, maybe then I will understand but nobody cares any more. I care, it’s difficult to realise something that nobody can take away from you, basically.

Q: (Amanpreet Singh - PTI) Congratulations, Sebastian. Would you say that people have been unfair to you when they say that F1 is becoming boring because of you winning everything but at the same time, there are people like Fernando Alonso who say that you should be respected for being the fastest?
SV: No, I’m not... I don’t know the word, nachtragend (resentful). I’m not... I don’t blame people. They boo because they are Ferrari fans. At the time it hurts, as I said, not to get the reception that you expect but at the same time, I think I’m clever enough to understand why they do it. I’m not blaming them. Maybe if I would be a fan of McLaren, Ferrari, whatever, one of the traditional teams, I wouldn’t like it if the same kind of guys, same team wins again and again. I think the most important thing for me is to get the respect from people that I know and people that I race against. I feel respected amongst the drivers. Sure you have to fight to get that respect when you come in but I’m not blaming the fans. It’s very difficult for the fans, to be honest, to understand what’s going on behind the scenes because they get a little of an idea of who we are but it’s impossible for everyone to introduce yourself and to explain what kind of guy you are. But then again, it’s nice to give a little bit back to people you meet, at the hotel, at the track, outside of the track, maybe when you’re shopping, people that recognise you. Therefore, I think it’s important that you get the respect from people that you really know. Others, I think, will always struggle, there will always be pros and cons, speaking for and against you.

Q: (Rohit Bhaskar – Hindustan Times) When you entered the room, you were on the phone. Who were you talking to? And what was the talk about?
SV: My parents and my brother. I was basically... they said congratulations. I said that I loved them very much, thank you and yeah, it’s very difficult to find the right words. As I said, it’s one of these things I struggle to understand right here, right now. But as I tried to explain in my message in German, there have been a lot of people supporting me on the way and for sure my family played a huge role. I think we just got to spend a very good time together and to have this sort of outcome, nobody expected that. It’s just a nice bonus at the end of the day.

Q: (Bharat Sharma - IndoAsian News Service) Congratulations Sebastian, you just said that you would love to explore India. Considering there’s no race next year, would you like to explore India in the off-season? Would you have the time?
SV: There’s not enough time in the off-season, to be honest. It’s a very busy schedule. If you look at the schedule itself, obviously December will be quite busy and then I get some time for myself at Christmas. And then we start very soon in January. It’s a big big big project waiting for us next year. I think teams like Mercedes, Ferrari spend a lot of time thinking of new ideas. It’s a new car, it’s a new engine so it will be an incredibly big challenge. We already start testing in January. I think this year’s winter will be as short as... or will be shorter than many winters before. And then you have... at the moment there’s 22 races in the calendar, so you don’t get to spend two, three, four, five weeks really for holidays or to have a break. I think, in the end, that India is big, lot of people here and you need more than a week or two to really get the taste of the country. It’s a shame but since there’s quite a good perspective that one day I will retire and I will still be young, I’m looking forward to that.

Q: (Santhosh Kumar C – Deccan Chronicle) Since you said that India is a special place to win, would you consider naming your 2014 car with an Indian angle?
SV: Actually, don’t get me wrong, but yesterday there were a couple of guests we had from the team and I signed some autographs and I was asking for their names and I regret that because I looked like an idiot. They were spelling the names and I’m... ‘OK, can you say that again?’ and one guy who had, I don’t know, some Ts in his name and he spelled it and he said D like Tomato. So I put D and I looked like an idiot because he actually meant T. Don’t get me wrong, you look like an idiot when he spells the name and you put something down wrong. For sure, my English isn’t perfect either but I struggled to understand him. I really like the people here, they are very friendly. He didn’t actually take it personally so we just did another card. With the right spelling.

(Source: f1.com)

The 2013 Indian GP review

First of all congratulations to Red Bull and Sebastian Vettel for their 4th world title. Alain Prost also won 4 titles in his career but not as fast. When Prost was in Sebastian's age he hadn't won anything yet.

People may say that he only wins because of Red Bull but I don't really believe in that. Mark Webber drives a very similar car. I believe that the car isn't exactly the same but it's close. Also in 2010 and 2012 Alonso had a very good car but didn't win. And yes I know that the Ferrari sucked in the beginning of the season but he didn't lose that much when Vettel didn't really win either.

That's it for the congratz and now let's focus on the race shall we!

The start was great for Mercedes. Hamilton almost overtook Vettel in the beginning but didn't have room to pass. Even though Hamilton got a good start Rosberg had better luck in the race.

Giedo Van Der Garde blamed Max Chilton for causing an accident "again" and called him an idiot on the radio.

Räikkönen, Webber and Alonso were fighting for positions but then they ran into each other. Webber jumped over the side and touched Kimi and right after that Alonso made contact with Webber and Button. Alonso dropped to 10th place and was forced to make an early pitstop. That was the end of Alonso's race because he couldn't really get higher up after that. Massa on the other hand drove a much better race for a change.

Almost all drivers with soft tires made very early pitstops including the world champion Sebastian Vettel. At first it looked like a stupid idea but eventually Vettel was at the top again as usual.

Nico Hulkenberg overtook Valtteri Bottas from the outside of the track and right after complained that Kimi is driving over the curves. It didn't give Kimi an advantage so it didn't matter. Hulkenberg on the other hand got a penalty for driving outside of the track and not giving the position back to Bottas.

Grosjean was driving from side to side behind Gutierrez and couldn't pass him. He complained on the radio that Gutierrez is holding him back. I'm sorry to say this but even a blind dog could have seen that Gutierrez was driving straight and did NOT change his line. What was the problem? If you wanna pass him you have to overtake him! HELLO!!

Mark Webber retired again! I mean what the hell?! WHY DOES THIS ALWAYS HAPPEN TO HIM AND NOT VETTEL? I have wondered about this topic before and I am wondering again till I get an answer. It was very sad of course and I would love to see him win a GP before he retires at the end of this season.
It would be awesome if he would win the last race and then retire. I think Jackie Stewart managed to do that when he retired. I am pretty sure that he did. Correct me if I'm wrong..

Then I was very surprised when I realized that Team Lotus is trying to get Kimi to finish with one single pitstop. WHAT?!? WHY?! He drove with the first set 8 laps and the tires were ruined. Then he got the harder tires and they thought that they would last till the end.. WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?! Then it seemed that he obviously couldn't finish and dropped from 2nd to 7th.

The Lotus team were really angry with Kimi when the tires were starting to fail and he couldn't let Grosjean pass right away. He couldn't move to the side in the fast corners and he was also obviously worried to lose a spot to Massa (right after he lets Romain pass). They said "GET OUT OF THE FUCKING WAY KIMI" on the radio. My jaw dropped when I heard this. How can they talk to him like that when they didn't say anything to Romain after Spa 2012 when he almost killed Alonso?! And what if Kimi would have wanted to fight against Grosjean even though it was very difficult? Lotus has stated that there isn't going to be any team orders..

What is going on at Lotus? Are they this grumpy about Kimi leaving? I don't blame him for leaving. I totally understand. Could you imagine Red Bull saying that to Vettel or Ferrari to say that to Alonso?! No never.. 

Some fans of Kimi Räikkönen have said that they will kill Alan Permane's family for shouting at Kimi. I know that it was very rude but please guys.. calm down! That's a bit too much.

Here's a clip with the radio conversation:



Right after he let Grosjean pass there was Massa right behind passing him as well just like he knew it would happen.

Then it didn't really matter that much to come in to the pits and change tires. Right after that Kimi was flying and got the fastest lap.

Vettel took the checkered flag and won not only the race but his 4th championship. He made a few donuts in front of the crowd and got a 25 000 euro penalty. Again I must say WHAT THE HELL?
This was almost as ridiculous when Alonso gave Webber a ride and they got penalized.

Anyways Vettel ended the GP weekend like a superstar and the crowd weren't booing for a change. Guess the "fans" finally realized what sportsmanship means and cheered for the champion. I am not a Vettel fan anymore but I still give a lot of respect for the guy even though the sport has become more boring because of him.

Then finally the guesses and the actual results. Here are my guesses:

Pole position: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull 

The race:

1. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull
2. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari
3. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes

(If Hamilton has problems with his car or himself I believe one of the Lotuses will take his place)

Fastest lap: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull

Surprise: Valtteri Bottas, Williams. He may finally take a point to Williams this weekend. Maldonado has already taken one point for the team and they haven't scored anything else this season.

Actual results:

Pole position: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull - CORRECT

The race:

1. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull - CORRECT
2. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes - I knew that a Mercedes would be up there at least..
3. Romain Grosjean, Lotus - I knew that if Hamilton has problems one of the Lotuses will take his place and that's what happened.

Fastest lap: Kimi Räikkönen, Lotus - WRONG

Surprise: Valtteri Bottas did not get his first point even though it looked like it would come true in the beginning. Unfortunately the Williams isn't good for anything this year. It may be that the one point Maldonado got will be the only point. I hope I am wrong because I always cheer for the classic F1 teams such as Ferrari, McLaren, Williams, Mercedes, Lotus etc.

So this was it for today. In the morning I am leaving for Dubai where I will spend 5 days and then it's Abu Dhabi baby!!

I'll try to write the Abu Dhabi GP preview on the plane. I should have time to do that when the flight is 6 hours.