Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull will go their separate ways following the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix next month, severing an association dating well beyond his six-year, hugely successful tenure at the eponymous outfit.
The German has been on the energy drink giant’s books since 1998, and though he ultimately made his Formula One debut for BMW Sauber in 2007, he has remained part of the Red Bull family to this day.
He handed Toro Rosso their first and only victory at the 2008 Italian Grand Prix – before the senior outfit had tasted success. Vettel would deliver this moment, having been promoted to Red Bull during the off-season, at the 2009 Chinese Grand Prix – the first of many triumphs as both parties embarked on complete domination.
Vettel became Formula One’s youngest champion at 23 years and four months when he pinched the 2010 crown in spectacular fashion at Abu Dhabi under the noses of Fernando Alonso and then teammate, Mark Webber. Nobody was aware at the time, but the Red Bull-Vettel combination had just commenced their rule of the sport for many years to come.
His 2011 campaign was peerless, his mastery of the dubious electronic blown diffuser elevated him to another level. A third title in 2012 was arguably his greatest triumph, having endured a trying first part of the season, he delivered four consecutive victories in the final races to secure another crown.
Barring misfortune ruling Vettel out of the remaining events, the 27-year old will depart Red Bull with an imposing record comprising 113 Grands Prix. Even if he fails to add to the 38 victories achieved as of the Singapore Grand Prix, a strike rate of one finger salute every three races, accompanied by forty-four pole positions, is impressive.
For all that has been achieved, Vettel is on track to be soundly accounted for by Daniel Ricciardo in his final campaign with the Milton Keynes squad, a sour note to conclude the partnership.
It opens the door to the notion that the German is prepared to accept mediocrity, ostensibly in the form of Ferrari, alongside an individual who has endured a similarly wanting season, rather than being consigned to a second consecutive year in a number two role.
Time is something Vettel can count on, unlike Fernando Alonso, who cannot afford to wait another three or four seasons to possess the class of the field.
Credit has to be given to Vettel for making the call to leave he comfort zone he has counted on for the best part of two decades. It is this notion which has the potential to define his legacy. If he can turn Ferrari into the force they were in the early 2000s – something Alonso was not able to manage despite his best efforts – the German will go down as one of the all-time greats.
As for his legacy at Red Bull, nobody can take away the four successive championships. It is a period which both parties will recall fondly for many years to come.
Jawad Yaqub
Roar Guru
I'm still glued to Twitter at the moment, waiting for anything new to pop up. His father's confirmed to French TV that he's still in emergency surgery for head trauma. Well none of the parties can say that reasonable notice wasn't given. As you say the typhoon warnings have been on the radar for the last week. Perhaps it could have been taken into consideration the difficulty the weather after the race may have on the turn around for getting the gear to Sochi by Tuesday. And yeah, why wasn't there a safety car deployed for Sutil's crash.
Bayden Westerweller
Roar Guru
Was going to switch straight to the NRL GF but I've been glued to the Twitter feed since the accident. Really this is a sensation I've always dreaded would come one day, but never expected, especially under these circumstances... Negligence by all parties - race was called to start earlier days in advance, this never happened. Safety car stayed out at least a few laps beyond racing conditions following restart. And finally, no SC when Sutil's crash triggered the tractor into a lethal location which has resulted in this potentially tragic outcome. It shows, FOM is guilty, and by extension, the FIA are by association, culpable of this accident in favour of appeasing those with the money, quite despicable really...
Jawad Yaqub
Roar Guru
For the moment, it's best that we hope for the best for Jules. Like many I'm still glued to my Twitter feed to see if he's reached the hospital yet and if treatment is underway. Well the promoters were asked twice apparently by the FIA about running the race at 11am local and they said it's better to keep it at the original 3pm local time because they'd get a larger audience.. There's no doubt that there's been a great deal of negligence today.
Bayden Westerweller
Roar Guru
Thanks Jawad. On a separate note, the Bianchi incident has far reaching consequences regardless of the outcome. How the f*^k could they not clear the tractor from that position by the time Bianchi had his accident? Serious malpractice by promoters, race control - specifically Charlie Whiting, there's massive questions to be asked. F1 considers itself the pinnacle of motorsport - as do many, but how can anybody use this term following this? It should never have happened, even with an injured marshal, surely it was their prerogative to move the tractor to a position not directly in the line of another car...
Jawad Yaqub
Roar Guru
Great work Bayden, there is no better way to summarise Sebastian's Red Bull career than what you've done here. If he does go to Ferrari, it will be interesting to see how the die-hard Ferrari fan's reactions will be. From what I gather on social media, the majority of the Ferrari supporters don't like him. So there will be some adjusting that'll have to go on there then. It's exciting too to see that Red Bull have entrusted their future in a relatively young driver lineup. If Daniil gets anywhere close to the performance that Daniel has had this year, he could potentially become the youngest ever race winner. And on that note, it's a positive sign to see that Red Bull are continuing to push their in-house drivers into the flagship team even though poor Jean-Eric has missed out again!