Horner would like to see Red Bull be crowned “with class”
While Sebastian Vettel can claim the title in Suzuka if he scores at least one point regardless of Button's result, Christian Horner stated that the team's goal remains victory and that they will not settle for a 10th place finish in Japan.
Sebastian Vettel has already won nine races this season – out of 14 – but he doesn’t plan to stop there. He is currently leading the championship masterfully, and he needs just one more point to be crowned, at the expense of Jenson Button – the only driver still in contention who can, mathematically, deprive him of a second consecutive title.
The Red Bull driver could approach the upcoming races quite calmly, but that’s not his desire; he wants to fight at the front, for pole position and victory – as he did this weekend in Singapore. And even though he only needs one point to be crowned, he will still aim for victory in Suzuka in two weeks to try to be crowned with class, as Christian Horner, the team director of Red Bull Racing, stated.
«Now there are only two left (who can still be titled), and theoretically one point is enough, but nothing is done until it’s over. In Japan, we will have exactly the same approach as in Singapore, and as in the other races of the season: try to do our best in Japan and make sure we can score that point. But we will also fight for victory, » Christian Horner told Autosport.
«It would be great to finish the job with class – and it’s Sebastian’s ninth victory this year (the one achieved in Singapore). It has been a phenomenal season so far and there are still five races remaining. »
Sebastian Vettel should be able to compete for the win at Suzuka, as the Japanese circuit appears to suit the cars designed by Adrian Newey well, as well as Sebastian Vettel, who is coming off two victories at Suzuka.
Niki Lauda also praised Vettel’s determination and desire to always fight as high as possible, even though he could have played it safe for intermediate points for several races already, especially at Monza when he attempted an overtaking move on Fernando Alonso on the outside with two wheels on the grass.
Any other driver would have approached this race (in Monza) with the championship standings constantly in mind. But no, Vettel proved with his killer instinct and aggressiveness that he is a true attacker, not someone who is content with intermediate points, Niki Lauda told the Swiss newspaper Blick.
