Sebastian Vettel refused to dwell on a frustrating start to the Formula One season in which mechanical failures robbed the German Red Bull driver of victories in the opening two races.
Vettel qualified on pole position in Bahrain and Melbourne but was unable to capitalise on winning positions in both races, limping home in fourth place in the season opener and retiring on the 25th lap in Australia.
“Look, we don’t lead the championship, it would be nice to be, but it didn’t happen,” Vettel said on Thursday ahead of this weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix.
“There are a lot of positives we can take from the race, we had a very strong car in qualifying and in the race but for various reasons we didn’t finish.” Times of India
“At the time it is very frustrating. I think we can see that the whole team was down but coming here we can see we are all happy again and we look forward to this race.”
He added: “What happened in Bahrain and Melbourne happened, but it is history and we cannot change it now.
“For sure it is not good and if you want to fight for the championship it is better not having these kind of things, but on the other hand we are only two races into the season and there are so many left so it is not a big deal.” The Press Association
Afterwards a disconsolate Vettel called on his Red Bull team to solve its reliability gremlins urgently, saying: “It’s nobody’s fault, but we need to get on top of it and [ensure] that we have a solid race and see the chequered flag in Malaysia.”
But talking at Sepang on Thursday, Vettel was more sanguine about the problems, insisting that the RB6’s reliability is fundamentally sound.
“The cars are built on the limit,” he said.
“We didn’t have a single problem in all of testing similar to the ones in the race in Bahrain and Australia, so shit happens and we carry on.”
“Both failures were things that happen very seldom, but that’s life and that’s racing.” ITV
Vettel is now 25 points behind Fernando Alonso’s early title lead.
“Of course it is annoying, yet another defect,” he said. “I could be going to Malaysia with 50 points.” ESPN F1
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