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Sebastian Vettel, the latest German driver to dominate Formula One, effectively wrapped up the championship in Korea, leaving fans and stakeholders discussing many of the politics surrounding the sport, although the accusation about Red Bull’s supposed illegal ‘driver aids’ now appear to have less traction.
While his pole position, fastest lap and race win reflect his dominance, it was not a race without incident.
Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg, who is hoping to fill the seat vacated by Kimi Raikkonen’s switch to Ferrari, had the race of his fledgling career in finishing fourth, most notably demonstrating good defensive driving skills in withholding strong challenges from Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso who were swarming over his rear-view mirrors after a restart.
There was also a five-car fight for tenth place, although many F1 fans will be disappointed that the sport is currently unable to deliver such thrills in a fight for the top of the podium as Vettel won his fourth race in a row.
Even devout race fans are muttering over the ‘boring’ nature of having the same winner every season, reminiscing to the days when Schumacher dominated the sport, and officials will be concerned over any fall in TV viewing figures because who wants to tune into a race when you already know who the winner is going to be?
Technically, Vettel could formally wrap up the title at Suzuka next weekend with another win and his nearest challenger, Alonso, finishing no higher than ninth. He has secured victory in Japan three times in the last four years.
Other talking points were a pigeon being removed from the side-pod of Daniel Ricciardo’s Toro Rosso and the fire that engulfed Mark Webber’s car following a reversal of fortune for Force India’s Adrian Sutil that saw him back-end the retiring Aussie.
While the marshalls in attendance were quick to extinguish the flames, Webber had been unsuccessful in attempting to remove an extinguisher from his cockpit, a problem that may result in a design review.
In addition, a puncture suffered by Sergio Perez led to a renewal of a debate concerning tyre quality that has simmered all season yet came to the boil leading into the race with Alonso claiming the Pirelli tyres were sub-standard leading to a retort from the manufacturer’s motorsport director, Paul Hembery, that the Spaniard should perhaps ask the ‘soon to be four-time world champion’ how to get the best from the same tyres.
Pirelli claimed in the aftermath of the race that the tyre failure was a flat spot burnt through the tyre under braking although Mark Webber was quick to point out that, even if this is the case, it should not be ignored that this problem is itself caused by poor quality tyres that quickly lose their grip. David Coulthard pointed to the vast quantities of rubber deposited on the track to further demonstrate the speed to which the tyres deteriorate.
As Webber’s career draws to a close, the existence of the Korean track on the calendar is under debate. While it has provisionally been included amidst 22 races for 2014 and their contract allows for races up to and including 2016, the Yeongam circuit is losing vast amounts of money and has failed to bring trade to the south-east area outside the port city of Mokpo as had been originally hoped.
Elsewhere in the paddock there are higher-level discussions. The prospects of F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone spending a lengthy jail term in Germany if he is convicted of charges relating to bribery and embezzlement see the vultures circling. Team owners are seeking a greater share of the F1 riches. While there is general acknowledgment that the income generated is a direct result of Bernie’s business acumen, there are whisperings that his billions are just reward, particularly with so many teams struggling to balance their books. Most notable of these is Lotus that has admitted to owing Raikkonen large sums.
Bahrain has also made the news in F1 this week. Initially, Maclaren’s Martin Whitmarsh announced that the 2014 race would be a ‘twilight’ event, starting in the sunshine and finishing under lights. Less promisingly, FIA presidential candidate, David Ward, announced that, if elected in the vote on December 6, he would ‘investigate’ the feasibility of allowing Bahrain to continue hosting a race. Ward is the only person to date that has agreed to challenge current president, Jean Todt.
