Sebastian Vettel came of age in Formula One after securing the first pole position of his career in the most dramatic of circumstances.
At the age of 21 years and 73 days, Vettel becomes the youngest man to claim pole, beating Fernando Alonso's record by 165 days after the Spaniard topped the grid in Malaysia 2003.
The young German let out an ear-splitting cry of "Wahooo!" over the team radio once it became apparent he had taken pole, while in the Toro Rosso garage his mechanics and pit crew were in a state of euphoria.
The relentless rain which scythed down on occasions during qualifying was the over-riding factor, but no-one could now take his achievement away as Vettel mastered the wet conditions better than anyone.
Behind him, title contenders Felipe Massa, Robert Kubica, Kimi Raikkonen and Lewis Hamilton will start sixth, 11th, 14th and 15th respectively as the conditions turned the field on its head.
Beaming from ear to ear, and with the enormity of the moment struggling to sink in, Vettel exclaimed: "Unbelievable! Incredible!
"When I was younger it was my dream to drive in Formula One, with my target to then fight for pole positions and race wins.
"But today I didn't expect this, it is so fantastic.
"Beforehand I joked with my engineers and said if it's wet we have to go for pole.
"But the conditions were so difficult. There was so much water, you never knew just what to expect. It was very, very tricky.
"At times it was so difficult you couldn't see anything, and there were times when you were lucky not to lose the car because of aqua-planing.
"I wouldn't say I'm a master in the wet, but this was superb. It's a great day for me and the team."
Vettel has only been in F1 for just over a year, but he has made such significant strides he is to switch to sister team Red Bull Racing from the Faenza-based Toro Rosso for next season.
Despite his impending departure, this is a day he will always be grateful for, adding: "You can't forget that just a couple of years we were the Minardi team.
"We've since made huge progress, with the package we have from Red Bull making our lives easier.
"But we are also doing a very good job. There is no secret to our success, only hard work.
"I've now been part of the team for a full year, and if you saw the guys then to now, the atmosphere is great, everybody is motivated.
"All the guys know that when they walk into the paddock they are here to do a job, and not just take part.
"It's great to see everybody working hard, the passion in their eyes, so as a driver it is just fantastic to give something back."
Although he starts on pole, Vettel knows winning the race is probably beyond him.
"Obviously we are in the best position, but we can't expect to win," assessed Vettel.
"It's a long race, anything can happen, and no-one knows what the weather will be, so we will see."
No comments:
Post a Comment