VETTEL HAS HIS SIGHTS SET ON TOP SPOT
SEBASTIAN Vettel aims to regain the championship lead he has lost to holder Lewis Hamilton as 2018 Formula One racing arrives in Europe for Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix.
The Ferrari driver Vettel made a slightly too optimistic passing attempt on Valtteri Bottas at the last race in Azerbaijan as he locked his brakes and had to settle for fourth in the end.
Mercedes’ Hamilton eventually won the race for his first season win and snatched the overall lead from Vettel by four points after four of 21 races.
The two four-time world champions will duel again on Barcelona’s 4.655-kilometres Circuit de Catalunya where Vettel was impressive in pre-season testing but has only topped a race once, in 2011.
But Red Bull will also make their presence felt as Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen will want to make their infamous collision in Baku forgotten.
All teams traditionally have plenty of updates for the start of the European swing, and Verstappen said the race weekend “could be quite a defining moment for the season.”
Mercedes motorsport chief Toto Wolff said he expects “a close threeway fight for the rest of the season” but the Mercedes camp will also be upbeat after getting a first season win.
“I think the performance upgrade battle will be important, to see how that development goes between both teams, so that will definitely be important. I think more unlocking the potential of the car,” Hamilton said. Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel celebrates on the podium after winning the Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix in April. The German says that he is ready to get back to winning ways in Spain this weekend.
“We definitely have some work to do, but we are in the mix.”
Ferrari, who won the first two season races from Vettel, are also optimistic as team principal Maurizio Arrivabene pointed out that “our car proved to be very competitive and capable of doing well on any kind of circuit.”
Vettel will be seeking a 50th career victory in Spain and hopes that he take the first step by claiming a fourth straight pole position – a vast improvement compared to last year where the Scuderia trailed in qualifying.
But his Finnish teammate Kimi Raikkonen will also eye the top of the Barcelona podium a third time in his career.
“I’m far from on the positive side yet ... We know we have the speed. We just have to put things together,” he said. – DPA