Question: Mark’s broken leg will have an impact on the team’s winter preparation. Obviously the major test work will now rest on your shoulders. Could that be an advantage to you, as you will be able to mould the car to your liking?
Sebastian Vettel: What happened to Mark was a shame and I hope he gets well soon. I didn’t have the chance to talk to him yet. We will proceed as usual with testing and for sure he will be missed but it is more important that he is back next year to get the new car running. We have to be even more focused down in Jerez at our next test and can’t afford to make any mistakes, as time is valuable.
Question: Looking back to the start of the 2008 season, it didn’t look too bright with a number of retirements caused by accidents and technical problems. Then suddenly with the arrival of the STR3 the fog lifted and you established yourself as a regular points scorer…
Sebastian Vettel: Well, first of all you usually don’t change cars mid season as we did - in Monaco we swapped to the STR3. It was seen by many as quite a risky move, but for us it was the dead-right decision - and it gave us a dream second half of the season. We had started into 2008 with the B-version of the ‘07 car and that caused us numerous retirements. Performance-wise too we were not there, where we would have liked to be, but everything changed after Monaco. And when we added some updates towards the end of the season our performance level was going up further. We can still hardly believe that we scored so many points - and even won a race! It’s phenomenal.
Question: When you overtook Lewis Hamilton in Brazil you said that you weren’t aware that it could have cost him the championship. Regardless, how did it feel - outperforming a McLaren in a Toro Rosso?
Sebastian Vettel: In the end I just wanted to pass the car in front of me - that’s what racing is all about. I knew when I came out after the last pit stop on intermediate tyres that I was behind Lewis, running solidly P5. I was hoping for some rain - and the rain came. That turned the race a bit chaotic, but in the end I was able to pass him. At that stage, because almost everybody was pitting, I didn’t know what position I was in - I just passed him. Thinking about it now and how important that manoeuvre was for Ferrari and McLaren, it was a damned important situation, a very special moment. Who would have ever guessed that a Toro Rosso would eventually pass a McLaren in a championship-deciding race? To pass the guy who is now the reigning world champion is not too bad.
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