15/04/2010
NEWS STORY
Despite having finally opened his 2010 win account in Malaysia, Sebastian Vettel has dismissed talk that Red Bull is the class of the field this year and is almost untouchable.
Vettel and his Australian teammate, Mark Webber, have taken pole for all three races thus far. However, almost certain wins for the German in the season opener in Bahrain and again in Australia, ended in disappointment due to reliability issues. However, in Malaysia, the team scored a convincing 1-2 leading to speculation that the Austrian outfit, if it has finally sorted its technical issues, is on its way to taking both titles.
Speaking ahead of the fourth round of the championship, at the circuit where he recorded his second ever win last season, Vettel refused to get carried away.
"We know we have a very good car but the other teams are always improving," he told reporters. "There's a very, very long straight here so McLaren could be quite strong again. Some people are saying some of the teams are bringing new parts.
"For sure, it will be tough to beat Mark again," he continued, "and then you've got all the others again, Ferraris, McLarens, Mercedes as well. It's not easy to deliver all the time. In the end you have to get the best out of your package and to be consistent as possible."
In Bahrain and Australia, Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button were there to capitalise on his car's reliability issues. However, the German reminded that the grid in Malaysia was topsy-turvy following poor decisions by both teams in Q1, hence the 'ease' with which he and Webber achieved their result.
"In Malaysia, we were in a luxurious position because some of the quick teams failed in qualifying," he said, "so I think the race would have been a different if we had all started at the front."
Another win this weekend could see the German take the lead in the standings, however, he refuses to be complacent.
"If you look at the world championship ranking, there is no gap, we are behind the others," he said. "We have to catch up. I hope that if we keep going as we have done in the last race, we can catch the others."