Foreword: Sebastien Vettel is Formula One's fastest rising star, and he has shown immense maturity in his first full season in Formula One.
Starting in humble surroundings at a young age, his talent was for all to see, and he secured his first ever pole position and victory at the Italian Grand Prix of 2008.
In this article and biography, I shall do my best to recap the story of the young German who has gone from word of mouth, namely that of Michael Schumacher, to the hottest young talent Formula One has to offer.
From his karting days as a young boy, to his new contract driving for Red Bull-Renault in 2009, this is the story of Sebastien Vettel.
The Early Years
When Sebastien Vettel was born in Heppenheim, Germany, on July 3, 1987, nobody could have foretold what would lie ahead for him.
He was always promised success in whatever field of life he decided to venture into, and when his father took him to a karting circuit, he was instantly hooked.
Over the months and years, his speed and phenomenal consistency was plain to see, and in 1995, at the tender age of eight, he began to race karts at a competitive level.
As the years went by, Vettel was becoming a speed demon in his home nation, and his success brought highly sought championships such as the Junior Monaco Kart Cup in 2001.
In 2003, he upgraded to open-wheel cars, and subsequently won the German Formula BMW Championship in 2004, scoring 18 victories from 20 races, the most dominant tally in the history of the championship.
The following year he drove for ASL Mucke Motorsport in the Formula Three Euroseries, and he finished fifth place overall in the standing with a total of 64 points. His success did not mean any victories in that season, but that was mainly down to the dominance of the series by Lewis Hamilton.
Vettel was awarded the honour of rookie of the year, and after his earlier success in the Formula BMW series, he was granted a test with Williams BMW, and he would eventually become BMW Sauber’s test driver.
The following season, Vettel was the early favourite to win the Formula Three Euroseries as Lewis Hamilton had moved on to the GP2 series, but Vettel had another Briton to be concerned about, in the form of Paul Di Resta.
He finished as runner-up to Di Resta, but he also made his debut in the World Series by Renault at Missano, winning after Pastor Maldonado was disqualified. However, at the next event at Spa-Francorchamps, Vettel almost lost one of his fingers when debris began flying through the air after an accident.
He was expected to be out of racing for several weeks, but was back racing the following weekend in the Ultimate Masters of F3 event at Zandvoort. Vettel then went on to be the test driver for BMW Sauber at the 2006 Turkish Grand Prix.
Vettel made an immediate impression when he set the fastest time of the Friday free practice session, and he was also very fast at the Italian Grand Prix where he was quickest in both free practice sessions, and the data gained from his pace led to his predecessor Robert Kubica scoring third place in the race itself.
He was later confirmed as BMW Sauber’s test driver for 2007, and he also competed in the World Series by Renault. He was leading that championship when he was permanently called up to race in Formula One, for the Scuderia Toro Rosso team.
comments (13) write a comment »
write a new comment
about 1 month ago
A very nice read MG, I loved your take on Seb V, thank you.
from about 1 month ago
Thanks Sara, took three weeks but I'm done, at last.
from about 1 month ago
Thank you for the pick Sara, much appreciated, hope all is well at your end.
about 1 month ago
Great article, I can tell this must have taken some time.
I wasn't aware of Mclaren's interest in 2007, but Lewis Hamilton and Sebastien Vettel would be an awesome pairing.
I enjoyed the read, thanks and a well deserved POTD!
from about 1 month ago
Cheers mate, I half wish McLaren grabbed him last year, he would have spanked LH, in my view.
Then, I am happy that he got to show how good he is in a car that should be fighting with the Indians, not the Germans and Italians.
from about 1 month ago
you must be having the same problem as me, the pick did not appear mate lol
from about 1 month ago
how strange, i have clicked it again!
about 1 month ago
Excellent read, Michael. Will have too watch this Kid, in 2009, when ever Speed airs the F1 Stateside and gave it POTD.
from about 1 month ago
Thanks for the comment and pick mate, much appreciated. Hey, come March, log on to justin.tv, you may find that there could be a live streaming site for Formula One. I haven't needed one myself, but I do know that some exist.
about 1 month ago
Great read there Michael. You got my stars and my pick.
Although, I would hate to see Vettel move to McLaren simply because I think that if he really put his mind to it, he could probably make Red Bull into something fast - nothing Schumacher-esque though...
from about 1 month ago
Thanks for that mate.
The amazing thing about next year is that we could have the Red Bull, Honda, Williams and Toro Rosso teams all fighting furiously for win, with the rest all tagging behind at their heels. The new regulations really could do all that to the field, Vettel may be fighting for the title with Webber, Rosberg, and, for once, Jenson Button.
I cannot wait for it, if the big boys struggle, I'll be quite happy actually lol.
about 1 month ago
great article.
about 1 month ago
As always, great work.
write a new comment