Sebastian Vettel has good memories of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix where he has won there three times, in 2010 defied the odds to win the race and with it seal his first of four Formula 1 world championship titles and this year, despite having conceded the title already, hopes to end the season on a high.
Speaking ahead of this season’s finale, Vettel said, “It is probably not the most sophisticated track – it is pretty wide – but that also means that there is more than one racing line. And to find the best solutions for you and your car probably separates the wheat from the chaff.”
“It is a power track with the many straights, but you also have to have good brakes to get a good lap. Even if the track at some parts is wide, it is not so easy to overtake and that means that you’d better qualify at the very front. And that is the plan.”
Fresh from victory in Brazil last time out, the German has the momentum and is targeting an end of the season boost for his Ferrari team, and added that victory on Sunday “would be a very cosy feeling. It helps – not only oneself but also the whole team.”
“It’s not that on Monday after the last race you start to think about what to do next season – of course that starts much earlier – but to win the last two races would show that we are heading in the right direction, and that would be very welcome. In the long winter days, it warms the heart to look back at a victory!”
Looking back on a season that promised so much, but imploded for him after the summer break, Vettel said, “There were quite number of great wheel-to-wheel battles. I fondly remember my overtaking Valterri (Bottas) in Spain, even if I had wished that he simply would have let me pass – but the action was good.”
“I remember a good fight with Daniel (Ricciardo) in China, and we had some occasions where I was coming from the very back so had to fight a legion of drivers to make it to the front. So sure, I was overtaking a lot of cars – some in a spectacular manner, others just by pulling the throttle a bit more. I just hope that in 2018 I don’t have to overtake so many cars again!”
As for the highlight, he said, “I would still go for Monaco. This is a race where emotions always run high – and if you win there, that is one of those magic moments.”
But added, “Mexico was bitter, having to realise that it’s game over and on a very personal level I would say that Baku was for sure not one of my highlights, as it was completely unnecessary to let all these points slip away, but the majority were strong races, many times crowned with a win or a least with a podium finish.”