Sebastian Vettel - a new hero

A few weeks ago, Renault team boss Flavio Briatore claimed that circuits like Valencia were the future tracks of Formula 1. I would like to ask Briatore to quit Formula 1 personally. What we have witnessed in the last two races at Monza and Spa was sheer entertainment.

True, getting soaked to the skin was something the fans could have done without, but the races showcased just how exciting Formula 1 can be. The conditions also showcased the drivers' ability and skill.

In the most difficult conditions, drivers who normally linger in the lower ranks waiting to be lapped clearly showed that their abilities are at par with the front runners - if not better. It is superfluous to talk about what happened to Lewis Hamilton at Spa. However, it is a fact that he is at one with his car in the wet, producing some superb precision-driving. It is a wonder why he did not push Felipe Massa further at Monza. Bear in mind that if Hamilton had to continue racing on full wets, he would have easily grabbed yet another win.

But the hour belongs to Toro Rosso's Sebastian Vettel, the youngest driver to win a Grand Prix after having mastered both qualifying and race. He drove immaculately, never getting a gear wrong and mastering the machinery. Ironically, the car was set up for a dry race. However, it performed exceptionally well in the extreme conditions.

Vettel was able to set an advantage of six seconds on McLaren driver Heikki Kovalainen in the opening laps. The Ferrari duo were again hampered by their tyre temperatures, which has become a constant problem for the team.

Considering that the remaining four races might be held in the rain, this will pose a handicap to the Ferrari drivers, especially title-challenger Massa. At Monza, Hamilton had a field day, having started 15th, bringing the brakes and tyres to temperature, and charging along overtaking one car after another.

After having been assured of his place with Ferrari up to 2010, Kimi Raikkonen still could not get into the rhythm of the race at Monza, unlike Spa where he excelled before heading for the wall just two laps from the end of the race in torrential rain.

The Vettel podium reminded the fans of the Schumacher era when the German and Italian anthems were played. It might not be long before we see Vettel in a Ferrari - well, from 2011 onwards. Maybe even earlier.

He has the makings of a world champion. I had a brief encounter with the German two years ago at the BMW Sauber launch when he was a test driver.

He is so methodical and very down to earth. It was also a life-long dream of the 'Cinderella' team of Giancarlo Minardi, now Toro Rosso, that its maiden win had to be in Monza and powered by Ferrari. Joint team owner Gerhard Berger was last on the Italian podium in 1988 when he was still racing for Ferrari, so Monza this year has brought a lot of nostalgia to everyone.

The circuit is in for more novelty this weekend with the first ever night race in Singapore.

Spa Grand Prix
(comments before penalty on Hamilton)

Felipe Massa (Ferrari), first: "This was a very strange race, with the start and finish in rather difficult conditions. After the start, I thought Eau Rouge might be wetter, and so I was a bit cautious. Kimi attacked and managed to get by. From then on, I realised it would be hard to pass the two guys ahead of me, even if the lap times were quite similar. I tried to manage the situation, especially towards the end. When it started to rain, I had a pretty good margin over my closest pursuers, and I preferred not to take any risks, especially given what was going on in front of me. Today the car wasn't perfectly balanced. On Saturday morning, we had slightly reduced the aerodynamic down force, as you usually do for the race here, but today's track conditions definitely did not suit this choice."

Nick Heidfeld (BMW Sauber), second: "I had a fantastic race weekend and I am very happy today. At the start, I got off better than the guys in front of me. Then I decided to go for the outside line, but unfortunately Heikki Kovalainen crashed into my car. This can happen, and I was lucky my car wasn't damaged. Of course, I lost a lot of places. Later on in the race I was able to get some back, but then I got stuck in traffic. When the drizzle set in I was convinced it would be heavier on the next lap and decided to change to wet weather tyres. When I left the pit lane after the stop I asked on the radio how many laps to go, and my engineer said this one and another one. As I couldn't see any cars on the track I thought, this was probably the wrong decision, but then it paid off."

Lewis Hamilton (McLaren), third: "That was one of the most exciting races of my whole career - it was incredibly tough. My spin on lap two put me on the back foot for the rest of the race, but I could see Kimi ahead and I was just pushing, pushing, pushing to close that gap, hoping he would catch traffic and allow me to get nearer. When the heavens opened, Kimi was a little cautious under braking, and I was able to get really close. When I had a look around the outside at the chicane, we almost had an accident, and I needed to steer left to avoid him. As we crossed the start/finish line, I left him the space to get back ahead and then managed to get my car up the inside at La Source."

Fernando Alonso (Renault), fourth: "It's a good result for the team, especially for our position in the championship because our objective was to score some important points. We missed out on a podium today, but we have shown that we can be the third strongest team in the championship."

Sebastian Vettel (Toro Rosso), fifth: "Both me and Seb have good reason to smile after a race like that. The last lap was unbelievable, and I was shocked as I got passed in the last 50 metres and then Heidfeld followed by Alonso drove past me with a 'whoosh' on their intermediates. We were all saying that Eau Rouge and Blanchimont are now flat, but with a few drops of rain, I tell you, you see the real nature of these corners. Overall it was a fantastic race, even though I was stuck in traffic for a while."

Monza Grand Prix

Sebastian Vettel (Toro Rosso), first: "A fantastic race, a fantastic weekend with pole as well and a fantastic strategy this afternoon. As for the podium ceremony, it was unbelievable , and this is the best day of my life. I will never forget these feelings. It is so unbelievable. It is better than I had ever expected. A big 'thank you' to everyone in the team for their great work. After a poor start to the season, we got better and better. Maybe in today's conditions, we could close the gap with a bit more effort or by staying on the throttle a bit longer. I'm speechless. As for the race, we were very fast in a straight line because we didn't go for high downforce as we thought it might be dry, so we stayed on the dry level. Being out in front with no visibility problems was the key and I could build up a solid gap to Heikki straightaway."

Heikki Kovalainen (McLaren), second: "In today's tricky weather conditions, I struggled to keep temperature in the brakes, and in the opening stages of the race I had problems with my extreme-wet tyres. First I thought it would improve after a few laps, but it didn't. Only at the end, was I able to match the lap times of Sebastian Vettel in front of me. In today's conditions he was just too fast for me - congratulations to him for his very first grand prix win."

Robert Kubica (BMW Sauber), third: "I'm very happy to finish on the podium today! Yesterday, qualifying was difficult when I was the first one not to make it into the top ten. The only advantage of this was I could choose my race strategy, and we decided to go for just one stop with a very long first stint. At the start, visibility was really bad. When the safety car went in after two laps, I overtook Nick (Heidfeld) before the first chicane without even seeing him. It was really dangerous. We were then lucky with our pit stop, because it was just the right time to change to intermediate tyres."

Fernando Alonso (Renault), fourth: "The result today is very good because Monza was supposed to be the race that we were looking forward to the least. We made up the five points that we needed in our championship fight, which is really rewarding and a big source of motivation for the rest of the season. I am now curious to see what awaits us in Singapore."

Nick Heidfeld (BMW Sauber), fifth: "Coming from tenth on the grid it is okay to finish fifth, but still my race wasn't ideal. Unfortunately I lost a place to Robert right at the start. It was the right decision to let us start behind the safety car. When it pulled off, the visibility was still so poor that I braked much too early and Robert passed me. This time it was the team who made the tyre choice. I left it to my race engineer, as on the pit wall they had a lot more information about the weather. It was absolutely right to go for intermediates.

pvella@timesofmalta.com