Sunday, September 14, 2008

Vettel takes Monza

Sebastian Vettel became the youngest ever winner of a Formula One race in Monza this afternoon.

The 21-year-old started behind the Safety Car in the pouring rain from pole position and drove a faultless race to take the victory.

Sebastien Bourdais had a very poor afternoon in comparison after his car failed to start and was left playing catch-up all afternoon, but still managed to finish 18th after starting a lap behind the rest of the field.

Sebastian Vettel (STR3-03)
Pos. 1st
“A fantastic race, a fantastic weekend with pole as well and a fantastic strategy this afternoon. As for the podium ceremony it was unbelievable and this is the best day of my life. I will never forget these feelings. It is so unbelievable. It is better than I had ever expected. A big thank you to everyone in the team for their great work. After a poor start to the season, we got better and better. Maybe in today’s conditions, we could close the gap with a bit more effort or by staying on the throttle a bit longer. I’m speechless. As for the race, we were very fast in a straight line because we didn’t go for high downforce as we thought it might be dry, so we stayed on the dry level. Being out in front with no visibility problems was the key and I could build up a solid gap to Heikki straightaway. Then I was pushing very hard, maybe going over the limit sometimes and I nearly lost the car. In the last stint I was in a very good position on the intermediate tyre. I couldn’t believe it when it kept saying “P1” on my board. But I kept my focus and kept pushing so as not to lose concentration. A perfect weekend.”


News and photos used with permission from Toro Rosso/Red Bull Racing.

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