Sebastian Vettel – The ‘Contract’ Killer!

Contracts, Shmontracts!

That’s what Paula Malai Ali had to say when she was asked to give her views on Sebastian Vettel’s imminent move to Ferrari. Can’t blame her anger, can we? Come to think about it contracts in any sport mean nothing if the right ‘amount’ of money is involved. Contracts have become the allegory equivalent of Novy Kapadia’s football commentary. We know that it is there, but does it really make a difference?

Football sees players signing 5-year multi mega deals every season only to leave 6 months later. Kind of a bummer, isn’t it? I mean why go through all the trouble and spend all that money just to have someone sign something that means nothing if, and when, someone else lures the said someone away by means of showering something (moolah) at ease? The answer – things need to be professional.

Okay! I guess it makes sense to an extent. I mean it’s kind of like a binding obligation that people need to respect in order to function in a civilized manner. It’s kind of like you washing your hands after using the toilet. It’s not necessary, but it’s advisable. But then why leave room for loopholes? Why have release clauses, buy-back clauses and all types of god forsaken clauses that are firm to suck happiness?

The answer to that might lie in the egocentric need of every individual to gain what’s best of a situation. All it took was a meticulously inserted clause in a sheet of paper called a “contract” and Vettel had an out. For Red Bull’s interest, I hope they too had some kind of a ridiculously repugnant clause that would guarantee them some kind of solace as well. Wait a minute. Of course they had. It was money! Right?

Now while Vettel’s move to Ferrari has still not been ‘officially’ confirmed, I guess because the “contract” must not have been signed, it’s just a matter of time that it will be. But what needs to be emphasized and scrutinized in the interim is the reason why the 4-time Formula 1 world champion decided to call it quits with Red Bull and decide that he wanted to ruin my team Ferrari for me.

Vettel seems to be at his diplomatic best when he said that the reason behind his leaving was that he wanted to "do something else, something new". Those are his exact words by the way. When loosely translated into simple English it means, “Fuck you Red Bull you couldn’t help me win those record-equaling 5 straight world titles you promised and therefore I’m off to do the implausible elsewhere.”

Not that he’s going to have any luck with Ferrari either. The Italian team are struggling themselves and run the risk of finishing outside the top three in the constructors’ championship for the first time since 1993. The last time Ferrari had a driver’s champion was in 2007 when Kimi ‘the iceman’ Raikkonen won. Mercedes on the other hand seem to have sorted their car out well for 2015 and it does not look likely that Ferrari would be able to match their ERS capabilities and present Vettel with a title-winning car.

Hmm! Okay! So if Vettel is smart enough he would obviously know that he won’t be winning anything for at least one more season. Unless of course if Ferrari pull off a Brawn. In that case Ferrari with Raikkonen and Vettel would be the undisputed coequal of Liverpool fielding Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo together. Possible? All right! I got carried away there. But you get the gist of what I’m saying.

Coming back to the “something else, something new” expression, Vettel, who in exemplary fashion, has rewarded the team that made him what he is today ever since being spotted as a 12-year old nothing has failed to comprehend that no one is naive enough to fall for his jinky antics anymore. Especially not this late into the season.

What does “doing something else, something new” even mean? He got bored of racing with Red Bull? Or was it the fact that the shade of navy blue makes him look fat? Maybe red is the color for glory (ahem Liverpool). Tell me Seb! I’m dying to know what the phrase means. Because what I feel is that the one season that a rival teams literally blows the wind out of your sails you decide that you’ve had enough.

“It’s not a decision based on the current results, it’s more a voice inside me that kept growing and it’s a step that I’m very much looking forward to,” Vettel said.

Was that voice Daniel Ricciardo’s? Because to be overshadowed, by a newbie nonetheless, in stunning manner after exhibiting an aura of gnarly dominance would definitely be a hard bullet for Sebastian to swallow. A guy jumping from Torro Rosso and eclipsing a champion who has won the world title 4 times on the trot was an occurrence that none in the fraternity would have dared to call. Another year of such “debasing” and Vettel would have considered retirement.

So what was left to do? Move to a team that is synonymous with and is an epitome of Formula 1 at a time when it wants you more than you want it. Maybe that answers the “something else” part. I’m still having a hard time coming to terms with the “something new” part especially because Sebastian Vettel at 27 years of age seems to have done most of the things that any Formula 1 driver could dream of.

And as much as it hurts me to agree, he has been one helluva driver. People might say that Red Bull gave him a great car and that he was just a puppet in the cockpit following orders and being given the right instructions to do the right things at the right time, but in all fairness his records speak for themselves.

He was the youngest driver  to drive at a Grand Prix, the youngest Grand Prix pole position winner, the youngest Grand Prix winner, the youngest Formula One world champion, the youngest driver to bag a podium position, the youngest driver to score a grand slam (pole position, win, fastest lap, and led every lap) – which sadly was at the 2011 Indian Grand Prix – and many many more ‘young’ records.

In addition, Vettel currently holds the records for most championship points earned in a season, the most podium finishes in a season, the most starts from front row in a season, the most wins in a season, the most pole positions in a season, the most laps led in a season, the most consecutive wins, the most wins from pole position in a season and numerous other achievements.

Please note that I’ve left out most of his other records because it was kind of getting depressing, distressing, discouraging and dispiriting to write a note about his superiority and find out that he actually came quite close to becoming the greatest of all time. If only Mercedes had not decided that enough was enough and it’s time to “recover” some long-lost “energy”.

Hence, what I’ve understood from this is that the “something else, something new” a guy with Sebastian Vettel’s “always-wanting-to-win-and-sulking-when-losing façade” can do, with a team that has been struggling for the past seven years in a sport that it has made itself tantamount with, is -------------------------- Kill another “Contract”! J

In Formula 1, two flints indeed start a fire!

It’s been an interesting Formula 1 season thus far. Despite the fact that Mercedes, led by Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, have dominated 6 out of the 7 races, one can argue the fact that the season is still quite open.  However, Mercedes’ unprecedented dominance is not what makes the season stimulating. We’ve had teams dominate F1 in the past. It’s not something that is new. The Ferraris, the Renaults, the Brawns, the Red Bulls, etc have all been there done that. What makes this season one to watch right till the end is that it’s yet again encouraging the “whether F1 is a team sport or not” debate in probably the most intriguing manner possible.

Ever since the inception of the sport and the controversies that came along with it, there have been numerous discussions about the same. Generally there is always this one team every season that has to deal the frustrating problem of managing two “hotshot” drivers. However, with the events that conspired at the Malaysian Grand Prix at the starting of the season and those at the recently-concluded Canadian Grand Prix, one can safely arrive at the conclusion that this season there definitely is more than one team that is facing this conundrum.

 Interestingly, when the current season started, people thought (nay believed) that the team this season bound to be faced with “team-order issues” is going to be Ferrari. And who can blame their thinking. Fernando Alonso teaming up with the ‘Iceman’ Kimi Raikkonen would make any F1 fanatic jump up and feel that it was just a combination waiting to explode and cause chemical chaos. After all, it was Alonso’s arrival that proved to be the catalyst in Kimi’s leaving Ferrari in the first place. Both can be cocky and neither would settle for being designated as the “number 2” driver. Both drivers have statistics that speak volumes about their illustrious careers in F1. And the cherry that tops it all off is the fact that they both were racing for a team called “Ferrari”, whose history when it comes to teamwork is quite “brilliant” in itself. But, the 2014 season painted a much altered image of what one had in mind.

Enter Mercedes - the team that dominated the pre-season testing with their hybrid engine technology. The team knew clearly that this technological advancement would put the Silver Arrows right at the top. They knew that this was going to be their season to lose. And worst of all, Hamilton and Rosberg knew that they’ve been blessed with a car that could make them start dreaming again. Hamilton, who won the 2008 drivers’ championship by a single point, would surely want to bask in that glory again. And of course Rosberg, who we all know is one the most hardworking drivers on the circuit, would surely like to get a taste of being called world champion. Hence, back came the problem. Who was going to be No. 1?

 See the thing with Formula 1 “teams” is that they actually intend to function as a team to win championships by exploiting individual talents. Therefore, every team that has a limited budget would always designate their two drivers as No. 1 and No. 2. The No. 1 driver of course would be given the better car, would be given more attention and would be the “hero” for whom the No. 2 would have to always make sacrifices. And that is where every team is faced with the moral dilemma of who’s what.

No team on the face of it would come out openly and say that “X” is the No. 1 driver and “Y” is No. 2. It is unethical, immoral and quite frankly illegal to some extent as well. What they do on the other hand is to pull off certain strategies and make it sound like it’s a “team order” meant for the benefit of both drivers. For instance, at the Malaysian Grand Prix this season Williams driver Felipe Massa was clearly told on the radio to let his teammate Valtteri Bottas, who was just one spot behind and on “better tyres”, pass ahead because apparently Bottas had a shot at overtaking the driver in front of Massa.

So let’s get one thing straight, shall we? Team orders in Formula 1 are clearly meant for creating a pecking order between the drivers in a team so that they don’t run the risk of not finishing their individual races or end up colliding with each other. What cannot (or rather should not) be done is to camouflage drivers preferences/designations with team orders. When the drivers are out there racing, it’s every man for himself. They need to worry about the drivers’ championship and the team needs to worry about the constructors’ championship. What cannot be (and again should not) be done is the team worrying about the drivers’ championship. Because that is where priorities are set and predilections are created.

Let’s take another example and come back to the point I made earlier about Ferrari having a “brilliant” history when it comes to team orders. At the 2002 Austrian Grand Prix Rubens Barrichello, who had led the race for majority of the laps, was ordered at the very last lap on the radio to let teammate Michael Schumacher pass in order for Schumi to have a better chance at competing for the drivers’ championship. Thinking about the situation objectively, it would have in no way hindered Ferrari’s position in the constructors’ championship had Barrichello won the race. It would still have been a 1-2 finish for the team. And therefore, this event clearly brought out the driver designation theory in open.

Another appalling incident happened at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix when Renault implemented the “team order” loophole to order Nelson Piquet Jr. to deliberately crash his car as the same would then result in a safety car being called on the track and would in return allow teammate Fernando Alonso to cruise through to victory without having anyone bothering him for overtaking. Nowadays, however, the thing that is of concern is that it is the drivers who want to be in control. They are no longer listening to these “team orders” because everyone is insecure beyond limit and almost every driver feels the only reason why the team is passing a certain order is because it, in some discreet manner, is favoring the other driver.

 And that is where the 2014 Formula 1 season comes into play with its captivating happenings. The recently-concluded Canadian Grand Prix was probably the most enthralling of all races this season. It was event-packed and full of drama ever since the five lights went out. As usual Mercedes led the rest of the pack with its impeccable driving. Rosberg was leading Hamilton and Mercedes were all set to bag their seventh 1-2 finish on the trot. However, somewhere around the 30-35 lap some interesting events started to churn up.

Mercedes, who quite frankly have been struggling the whole season with handling Rosberg and Hamilton, issued a “genuine” team order that politely asked both drivers to not exert too much pressure on their cars and save energy for ERS implementation. The order was perfectly in line with the rules as it focused on the team’s benefits and not the drivers’. But the Hamilton-Rosberg rivalry that had been waiting to explode ever since the qualifying fiasco at the Monaco Grand Prix proved to overshadow the authority. As a result, Hamilton had to retire at the fag end with a brake snag while Rosberg ended up surrendering his number 1 spot to Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo.

Keeping in mind the famous saying that goes “it takes two to tango”, the problem does not just lie with F1 teams issuing driver-specific orders discreetly in the form of “team orders”. The problem is much more beyond that. It goes as deep as the teams being helpless in front of the drivers. It goes as deep as the teams feeling the need to favor a certain driver so that his image can bring in the moolah. And it goes as deep as the team encouraging this great drama that promotes the sport in a more enchanting manner. The question remains though – whose ‘flint’ are you on?

Is Sebastian Vettel really the greatest ever?

Let's be honest, shall we? As much as I hate to admit it, I know that I have to come to the disconcerting “fact” that Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel might actually be the greatest Formula One driver of all time. I’ve come to this “enlightenment” because of the recent events that have taken place in the racing scenario.

Of the last six races, Vettel has won five with four of them being on the trot. A win in the next race (Japanese Grand Prix) would actually just roll the carpet for the German to be crowned the youngest ever quadruple world champion when the Indian Grand Prix takes place on October 27th. And how ironical it would be if India is “chosen” as the country where Vettel achieves this “dreaded” achievement.

For those of you who’re confused right now as to what blasphemous connection I’m trying to make between India and Vettel, don’t worry. I’ll explain. Remember a driver called Narain Karthikeyan? The person who was called the ‘fastest Indian in the world’? Well, believe it or not he actually got the opportunity to drive in Formula One for 3 years. Shocked? Don’t be. That’s what the world thinks you know. The world thinks that Indians aren’t capable of doing anything else except feeding cows and spreading corruption.

Being a little cynical, am I? Well not exactly. I’m pretty sure that Sebastian Vettel thought (and thinks) the same way about Indians as well. There was this incident involving him and Karthikeyan that was the onset of my hatred towards Vettel. Vettel called Karthikeyan an “idiot” and flicked him off on Live TV in front of the whole world just because the “Indian” did not let him pass through on a blue flag.

It was totally uncalled for. Vettel fans called it his “immaturity”. Others called the incident “heat of the moment”. Whatever! It really incepted this bad emotion within me regarding Vettel. So, that is why it would be really ironical if India gets to be the country where Vettel is crowned world champion for the fourth consecutive year.

Getty Photo

Anyway, coming back to the trepidatory fact that Vettel might actually be the greatest F1 driver in history, let’s look at a few specifics. Sebastian Vettel, the child prodigy as some called him when he was making his name in the Formula 3 World Series, has probably broken all the “young” records that there are to be broken.

He was the youngest driver to have taken part in an official practice session, the youngest to have scored championship points, the youngest to lead a race, the youngest to secure pole position, the youngest driver to set the fastest lap time during a race, the youngest to get a podium position, and of course the youngest to have won a race. And if that was not all, he’s the youngest single world champion. Scratch That. He’s the youngest double world champion. Oh Damn! Scratch that as well. He’s the youngest triple world champion in the history of the sport.

Those kinds of facts are really hard to argue and mess with. I mean come on. The man has broken almost every possible record there is in the books. And if he has not, then he definitely has his sights set on them. It is this intent to win at any cost by compromising one’s ethics and ideologies that makes Vettel who he is.

We all know the ignominy that happened between Vettel and his Red Bull teammate Mark Webber at the Australian Grand Prix earlier this year. Which is why some freaks like me might hate Vettel’s guts, but that does not change the ugly truth – Sebastian Vettel gets the “W” when it matters the most.

Of the 115 race entries that Sebastian Vettel has in his career, he has won 34 races that takes his win percentage to 29.56%. When compared to the legendary Michael Schumacher’s 308 entries to 91 wins data, Vettel pips the German marvel because Schumi’s win percentage came to 29.55%. On the other hand, in the total poles won category, of 115 entries Vettel has 42 pole positions as compared to Schumi’s 308-68 data. That takes Vettel’s success percentage to 36.52% as compared to Schumi’s 22.08%.

However, there is a reason why Michael Schumacher is probably the only “legend” that Formula One will ever see. One of those is the stupendous record that Schumi holds where he has the most consecutive wins from the first race of a season. Schumi won the first 5 races of a new season in 2004 when he won from the Australian Grand Prix till the Spanish Grand Prix.

Schumi also comprehensively holds the astounding record of the most wins at the same Grand Prix. He has 8 wins at the French Grand Prix, 7 at the Canadian Grand Prix and the San Marino Grand Prix, and 6 at almost every other Grand Prix there is in the world. Hard to fight with those kind of records right?

But there was something that happened at the recently concluded Singapore Grand Prix that really blew my mind away. Something, which when looked into in detail, really brought forward the veracity of how talented and dominating Sebastian Vettel really is. Not only did the Red Bull driver win at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore, he did with a tinge of superiority - the magnitude of which was staggering.

Vettel led from start to end and the manner in which he kept gaining speed and increasing the gap between him and the “second best” was indeed breathtaking and was definitely something that even the great Schumacher never did. Vettel was 1.9 seconds clear after the first lap, 4.2 seconds clear after the second lap and by the time he reached lap 43 he was 30.6 seconds clear off the closest compatriot behind him.

Vettel won the Singapore Grand Prix by over 32 seconds. Believe me, 32 seconds is like an eternity in Formula One. Not only is such a dictating performance highly uncommon; but considering the fact that it was done right after the safety car was withdrawn, on a circuit that has not been incident free since its inauguration, is truly commendable.

Vettel, at present, has 3 Formula One driver’s world championships to his name. It can, and probably will, be 4 by the end of this season. Schumi has 7 in total. Vettel is 26 years old right now and can easily get 3 more till the time he is 30. Not only that, Schumi has the record for the most consecutive Formula One driver’s world championship titles at 5. So, with the kind of predominating form that Vettel is in right now, the German has a very good possibility to break that record as well when he races next year and the year after that.

Vettel’s achievements speak for themselves. I’m no one to question his capability. His caliber and aura speak volumes when it comes to fighting his case of earning respect. He has the talent, he has the skill, and “best” of all he has the technology in Red Bull to help him achieve his dream of becoming the greatest of all time. The only question that remains though is…

Does he already think that he is?