Vettel emphasises champion status

Sebastian Vettel
12 April 2012

Sebastian Vettel delivered a champion's drive to secure his 10th victory of the season and hand Red Bull their second consecutive Formula One constructors' title.

A week ago Vettel was marginally disappointed not to have sealed his place as the youngest back-to-back and two-time champion in F1 history with victory in Japan, instead settling for third at Suzuka.

Seven days on and Vettel underlined his title-winning status with another faultless display in the Korean Grand Prix, finishing 12 seconds ahead of McLaren's Lewis Hamilton who fought valiantly to hold off Mark Webber for the final 20 laps.

Vettel still has a shot at equalling Michael Schumacher's record of 13 wins in a season, but will have to take the chequered flag in the final three races in India, Abu Dhabi and Brazil to do so.

Coming into this race at the Korea International Circuit, Red Bull held a 130-point cushion over nearest rivals McLaren. After taking first and third, and with the McLaren duo second and fourth with Jenson Button off the podium for the first time in five races, the gap is now 140 with just 129 available.

It means Red Bull have secured the rare feat of the double-double, taking back-to-back drivers' and constructors' crowns.

Hamilton did all that could be expected of him at the start, making a clean getaway and keeping Vettel behind him on the short run down to the left-handed turn one.

But the 26-year-old then had no answer to Vettel over the next few seconds, initially doing just enough to hold off the German on the approach into the sharp right at turn three. But out of the corner and on the blast towards turn four, Hamilton could not defend, almost making it all too easy for Vettel to grab the lead.

Hamilton fought furiously to hold off Webber, who only momentarily grabbed second on lap 49 into turn one and through turn two, only for the former to respond on the long straight that followed. Behind them Button and Alonso were close, but never really close enough to challenge for the podium places, the quartet separated by 3.6secs come the end of the 55 laps.

Felipe Massa took sixth in his Ferrari, followed by the Toro Rossos of Jaime Alguersuari and Sebastien Buemi in seventh and ninth, the duo sandwiching Mercedes' Nico Rosberg. For the fourth time in the last six races, Paul di Resta finished in the points for Force India, taking 10th.

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