Sebastian Vettel finally lived up to expectations by winning his home race after being given a run for his money by potential new team-mate Kimi Raikkonen.
Vettel took the chequered flag at the German Grand Prix for the first time in six attempts, finishing just a second ahead of fast-charging Kimi Raikkonen in his Lotus.
Vettel is 34 points clear of Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso in his quest to win a fourth successive Formula One world title as the Spaniard was only fourth, with Raikkonen a further seven points adrift.
With Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber quitting at the end of the year, the talk is that Raikkonen will join Vettel next season.
Welcoming the opportunity of partnering Raikkonen, Vettel said: “I wouldn’t mind. I’d definitely be excited by the challenge. I get along fairly well with Kimi. We’ve never had a problem on the track, and I respect him a lot on and off it.
“There’s no doubt when it comes to qualifying, to racing, he does his job very well and gets the maximum out of the car.”
Vettel appreciates, though, having survived one attack from Lotus’ Romain Grosjean earlier in the race — the Frenchman finishing third — he was fortunate to hang on as Raikkonen bore down.
“I’m very happy the race ended after 60 laps, and not 61 or 62,” added the 26-year-old. “Lotus were incredibly quick and definitely gave us a big run for our money, so I’m happy it worked out.
“Both tracks, Hockenheim and Nurburgring mean a lot to me. To race in Germany, to have a home grand prix, is a privilege. It’s a special day.”
Behind Alonso, Lewis Hamilton was the best of the Britons, passing former McLaren team-mate Jenson Button on the final lap to claim fifth after starting on pole.
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Mercedes struggled with their old problem of degradation in the heat, to which Hamilton said: “We’ve clearly a good car but for some reason it doesn’t work in these hot conditions.”
