Red Bull need three "perfect" race weekends to ensure a third straight drivers' and constructors' world championship double after Sebastian Vettel's victory in India, says team chief Christian Horner, according to a report in The Times Of India.
Germany's Vettel, winner of the title in 2010 and 2011, cruised to his fourth consecutive victory on Sunday, leading the Indian Grand Prix from start to finish in a dominant display. The 26th win of his career gives Vettel a 13-point lead over his nearest challenger, Fernando Alonso of Ferrari, who finished second at the Buddh International Circuit after starting fifth on the grid. Red Bull enjoy a healthy 91-point lead in the constructors' championship over Ferrari. But speaking after Vettel's consummate triumph in the heat and dust of New Delhi, Horner warned against complacency as he looked forward to the final three races of the season in Abu Dhabi, the United States and Brazil.
"We certainly cannot afford to be complacent because Fernando Alonso keeps turning up," said Horner, after Vettel and his Red Bull team-mate Australian Mark Webber sandwiched the Spanish driver in second place.
Meanwhile The Hindu reports that just as he had done last year at the Buddh International Circuit, Sebastian Vettel subverted the field in the Indian Grand Prix on Sunday afternoon to hammer out his fourth successive victory and the fifth of the season.
“The win put Vettel (240 points) 13 points clear of his hustling Ferrari rival Fernando Alonso, who finished second. It was a near perfect weekend for the Red Bull driver — near perfect in the sense that he dominated the three free practice sessions, won pole position and led every lap of the race before crossing the finish line nearly 10 seconds ahead of Alonso,” says the report, adding that if only Vettel had set the fastest time — that belonged to Jenson Button of McLaren: 1:28.203s — he could have achieved another ‘Grand Chelem’ here.
Meanwhile The Times of India reports that Sebastian Vettel landed in India with a six-point lead. He left India with a 13-point cushion and a smile that will stay on his face on the flight to Abu Dhabi, where Formula One will reconvene for Round 18 of the 2012 championship.
For the second year running, Vettel proved himself the undisputed master of the Indian GP. Having driven flawlessly the whole weekend, except for a tiny bobble late in qualifying on Saturday, Vettel and 'Abbey' - Vettel's name for his 2012 car - did what was expected of them as Vettel cantered to his second consecutive win at the Airtel Indian Grand Prix. It was the first time that the 25-year-old has strung together four successive wins in a season. It was also the first time since Ayrton Senna in 1989 that a driver has led every lap for three races in a row.
