Sunday Report: Red Bull – Vettel Continues His Momentum

While Sebastian Vettel had a rather uneventful race at the front, without encountering any major issues, his teammate once again missed the mark at home, apparently due to premature tire wear that forced him to switch to the hardest tires earlier than planned.

Sebastian Vettel – 1st

I’m very happy, it was a good weekend and I had a very nice car to drive this afternoon. It was a good race, towards the end things settled down a bit. Lewis didn’t push as hard, so we tried to control the last part of the race. I don’t think it was easy today. The start was crucial, and being on the clean side, I got a very good start. I didn’t know if it was enough, but I saw Lewis and Mark fighting with each other. I pulled away right from the first lap and we tried to maintain it during the first stint. When the tires started to degrade, Lewis came back and we pitted. I believe it was the right time, as I couldn’t have done more laps. After this first stop, it was crucial to overtake Jenson, which I did. […] In the second part of the race I didn’t know what was happening with Lewis, whether he was under pressure or not, but towards the end I was able to secure the result a bit more. We learned a lot today. It was good to come here after a long winter and be on pace.

Mark Webber – 5th

I wasn’t fast today and it was the same in qualifying yesterday, so we need to understand why. There wasn’t much else to do today. I lost a position to Fernando (Alonso) during the pit stops and it was over. It was very frustrating. Seb had a good race, […] but it’s not normal that I couldn’t keep up with the pace at the front. I should be able to stay with those guys, but today, I finished far behind. It was a difficult race and I pushed as hard as I could, but I didn’t gain much in return. Finishing so far behind is not really usual for us, but let’s stay cool: it’s only the first race.

I can’t wait to go to Malaysia, I wish the race were happening tomorrow.

I didn’t have the same race as Sebastian today, so we had to do things differently. I was struggling with the tires well before him, so we need to see why.

Christian Horner

« It was a fantastic performance by Sebastian today. He dominated the entire weekend […] and won the race without making the slightest mistake […] It is a testament to all the work that has been done over the winter and to have played the championship to the end and win the first race here is a fantastic accomplishment.

We are also very proud to have won Pirelli’s first race upon its return to Formula One. The tires worked as expected, with a combination of two and three stops, and while discovering the new rules, it’s fantastic to come here and dominate a race that hasn’t always been successful for us.

Unfortunately, things did not go well for Mark at his home Grand Prix, and we need to understand why. We made a slightly different strategic choice by fitting the hard tires during the second stint, while his tire wear seemed greater than Sebastian’s. […] I’m sure things will return to normal in Malaysia.