Red Bull: Vettel in Search of Lost Time
Let down by his Renault power unit in Australia, Sebastian Vettel intends to get back to business at the next race in Malaysia. The German justifies his renewed ambition by the performance of Ricciardo's Red Bull in Melbourne, which was much better than expected and full of promise.
The four-time World Champion experienced an unusual Sunday during the season’s first Grand Prix: for the first time since last July 28 in a race in Budapest, he didn’t score 25 points; not even a single point, in fact, since his race ended after four laps.
Daniel Ricciardo’s performance at the wheel of the other Red Bull, admittedly demoted, but a valiant second throughout, has reason to make the German optimistic: « We still have a lot of work to do with the car, but it was encouraging to see that our pace was better than expected in Australia – luckily, we can build on that and start our harvest of big points over the next two races. »
A harvest that will therefore have to begin under the expected monsoon of Sepang, which signals a physical challenge that Baby Schumi is necessarily aware of: « Beyond the circuit challenge, you have to deal with the tropical heat. We can drive with humidity levels of up to 90%, as heavy thunderstorms are not uncommon in the afternoon. »
Vettel is therefore well-acquainted with the Sepang circuit, having arrived as the most recent winner after an epic and fratricidal battle with Mark Webber: « When observing the circuit, there are two places where overtaking is possible: after the first corner and before the last one, in both cases after a long straight; my favorite turns are five and six. » It remains to be seen whether the power deficit of his Renault engine will specifically disadvantage Vettel on these long straights.
True conviction or Coué Method? The reigning four-time world champion knows full well that two consecutive retirements would result in Mercedes already pulling ahead in the championship. And with a regained ambition, the fall could be harder.
