Vettel: “I was sleeping” at restart

2010 F1 season

Posted on

| Written by

Sebastian Vettel was unhappy with the drive-through penalty that cost him a likely win in the Hungarian Grand Prix.

He was hit with a penalty for failing to stay close enough to the leader Mark Webber as the race restarted.

Vettel admitted in the press conference he hadn’t been ready for the restart:

It was a very easy race because we had a pace advantage. At the restart I was sleeping and I was probably relying too much on the radio. In the first stint I lost the radio and didn’t hear anything. I was waiting for an instruction when the first car was coming in.

Also Mark, when the safety car is coming in the leader usually drops back, but he was very close.

Then when I saw Mark and the safety car very close to each other and the safety car was going into the pits I realised what was going on.

I am very disappointed because it would have been a walk in the park today.
Sebastian Vettel

He gestured angrily with his hands when he came in to serve the drive-through penalty during the race. He said afterwards he didn’t understand why he’d been given the penalty:

I didn’t understand what was going on and why I’d been penalised. So it was a question mark for me, I didn’t understand at the time.
Sebastian Vettel

Vettel ended the race in third place.

2010 Hungarian Grand Prix

    Browse all 2010 Hungarian Grand Prix articles

    Image (C) Red Bull/Getty images

    Author information

    Keith Collantine
    Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

    Got a potential story, tip or enquiry? Find out more about RaceFans and contact us here.

    61 comments on “Vettel: “I was sleeping” at restart”

    1. its funny how many pole positions this kid has botched

      1. It reminds me of Montoya back in ’02

    2. I’ll see that as showing his inexperience and youth. I guess we can’t really fault him more than Hamilton when he is having trouble when the pits isn’t clear or smart (as shown in China). He does need to stop that and realize that he is racing there – similarly to dropping back to take the fastest lap, instead of trying to put pressure on Alonso.

      Webber definitely looks to be the more complete driver of the two this season.

    3. This is one of the few I felt sorry for him though, because he was untouchable for most of the weekend. Still, I just have to remember Turkey for the guilt to vanish!

    4. Shouldn’t he get another penalty for crossing the line while pitting?

      1. i guess that only applies when he’s exiting the pitlane

        1. MouseNightshirt
          1st August 2010, 16:02

          Aye, as far as I know, there’s no rule for entering the pit, just exiting.

          1. Yeah, look at how Alonso pitted in China cutting off Massa, no penalty there.

      2. Whether you can cross the white line at the pit entry, as well as other similar details, is notified to the team managers during a meeting at the beginning of the race weekend.

      3. I was wondering the same thing, just like after the race where Alonso jumped in front of Massa at the last second – are there clear rules for pit lane entry? And if not, shouldn’t there be?

    5. LOL he got to control all that finger pointing, and arm waving…

      What a tool.

    6. Keith: “I didn’t under what was going on and why I’d been penalised.”
      know* ?

    7. Are we sure it was the restart where vettel broke the 10 car gap rule? The replay on the telecast showed vetted falling behind webber along the pit straight (still under safety car, before the restart). Maybe it happened more than once?

      1. That is correct. So hes got only himself to blame.

    8. mad day, webber wins again, gee atherton wins qually in DH world cup.

    9. great place to have a sleep. LOL

      when watching Mark Webbers in car camera doing those fast laps after the safety car, man that car was sooo smooth in an out of the corners, no twitching it hung in there and responded to Marks every move, what a awesome car.

    10. Vettel should be given a penalty.

      He gestured angrily with his hands when he came in to serve the drive-through penalty during the race.

      He was not in FULL control of the car, he had removed his hands. This should be penalized, IMPROPER driving.

      1. Drivers always stick there hands out the cars. They drive with no hands to operate the F duct so in the pitlane at cruising speed I don’t see how it’s a problem.

        1. Because there are people near who AREN’T behind barriers…..

          1. The drivers do it after the race, when the marshalls are on the track waving the flags…

    11. Even if he was asleep he should have woken up. He should have won or could have won but he chucked it away for whatever reason. he’s right to be annoyed but at himself not the penalty.

      I’m not Seb’s biggest fan and I think he’s wrong to be having a go when it was his own fault but at least he seems human and a bit less PR which is rare with drivers.

      1. People want emotion from drivers. I’ve heard people saying they are sick of robots saying “I’d like to thank the team and sponsors for everything.”

        Everyone wants to win the title. Seb wants it so bad so surely you can understand when he finishes 3rd (when it was a clear victory for him) he’s not smiling and all happy.

        Same with Alonso in Valencia and Silverstone. They want to win, I want to see drivers wanting to win, not settle and be happy with a result that’s not what they should have got.

        1. I agree full heartedly. I like a bit of moaning. However, Seb only has himself to blame in this case I feel.

          1. I agree it is better to have drivers with emotions (although I think F1 lost with the departure of Kimi) but in this case Vettell has only himself to blame.

      2. I agree it’s nice Vettel tells what’s on his heart here. This one’s up there with Kimi “getting bored” in the car.

        Well Seb, most of us were getting just as bored as you seeing you going around miles in front of everyone else.
        Sorry you fell asleep during the SC, but you saved the race for a lot of the viewers, so thank you for that.

    12. Bleh, he just ruined his reputation with me. Sulking on the podium, angry gestures aimed at the stewards … he needs to go away and grow up.

      1. Franton – Right you are !!

        1. Maybe experiences like this are just what the doctor ordered on that front..for example I think the trials and tribulations McLaren faced in 09 ended up producing a much more mature Hamilton (though he’s still got some rough edges, i.e. yelling at the crew in Australia), but misfortunes can be pretty good learning experiences in racing :)

      2. So Massa’s repututaion with you is ruined as well?

    13. Some weeks ago, someone made the comment that Vettel was fast when he was alone in clear air, but that he couldn’t overtake. What I have seen since convinces me that this is true. Yes, I know the Ferrari was faster down the straights, but there’s definitely a pattern here. And he needs to understand that all of the rules, even the most elementary ones, apply to everyone, no matter how special you are.

    14. Webber vs Schumacher vs Vettel. What a contrast in personal character and sportsmanship.

      1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buArrMpQgGo

        Webber is the new Princess Diana of F1. People seem to forget what he’s done in the past and he’s had his fair share of moaning this year.

        1. Did Webber get a penalty for that? What does that tell you?

          1. It tells you everyone does it but it’s only remembered when Schumacher does it.

            1. And Webber can do no wrong

            2. To be fair, that was a pure racing incident. No way you could say that he was trying to take the other guy out, which was arguable in Schumacher’s case (although I don’t believe that was his intention, either).

            3. Indeed, what Journeyer said.

        2. I didn’t see anything out of the order. He saw Kimi behind him and closed the door.
          Probably didn’t even notice Kimi’s front wing was crushed by his wheels.

    15. The Boy Blunder strikes again and talk about sour faced about it ,what a brat.

    16. Wow!! Now he’s blaming Webber for his stuff up! It doesn’t matter that he doesn’t know the rules but that nasty Mark Webber, well, imagine him being close to the safety car. Poor little wunderkind, can’t think and drive at the same time.
      Someone at RBR should tell him it is a mark of disrespect to stand with your hands on your hips during the playing of a national anthem.

      1. dyslexicbunny
        1st August 2010, 16:46

        I bet if Chandok was his teammate, he would call Vettel to let him know things were getting serious again.

      2. That’s what I’ve been thinking. Take a look at his interviews this year and it’s always someone (or thing) elses fault.

        Maybe it’s what you need to win, but sometimes you need to accept that you are to blame, if only to learn from the situation next time round.

    17. Steve Slater on Star sports was telling something like Vettel was defending webber by holding up alonso so that webber can make his pit stop later!!

    18. Initially I thought that he was implimenting a team order to let Webber get ahead the jump on the field to ensure he jumped Alonso when he stopped… his gesturing proved that wasn’t the case.

      1. Exactly my thoughts. And it seems that Webber should have been the one penalized for benefitting from the pick-move. Why else would Vettel have let Webber stretch out a two-corner lead just as the SC went in? Vettel knew what he did, he just didn’t know it was illegal.

        What’s with his hand-shaking at stewards, and his apparent go at them post race, etc.? In other sports you don’t get to openly disrespect the refs like this wihout punishment.

      2. I must admit this is what I thought was going on. I actually thought we were seeing some outstanding team work from Red Bull. Seb holds up the pack just long enough for Mark to get P2 (of course I didn’t consider the 10 car rule at all.)

        Then again this is not what happened. Vettel was having a nap!

      3. pretty sure that’s what happened. But I knew on the spot he would get a drive thru. I even tought you couldn’t do as much as ten cars.

        1. Indeed, I think in the past they had to stay within 3 car lengths.

    19. As much as I like Sebastien Vettel, I still think he has a long way to go before he wins the championship. In this I am not questioning his obvious talent and skill behind the wheel of a racing car, but his attitude.
      He clearly made a mistake today and was punished for it, but it was his reaction afterwards that was most telling. He let the whole thing get to him, unsettle him, and he lost sight of the bigger picture. From Mark Webber’s perspective not only did he manage his mammoth stint on supersoft tyres superbly, but he kept his overall focus. He clearly, at the same time as driving the wheels of his racing car, planned with the team via radio how to best pit without losing too much time to Alonso. That was impressive, under pressure, thinking of how best to ‘help the boys’ and make the task as easy as possible.
      No doubt Ferrari spotted Vettel’s blunder and were probably quick to tell Charlie Whiting there perspective of the proceedings, and for awhile, it looked as if it were Fernando’s race to lose. Until Webber showed just how far he has come, and just how fast he can go.
      I have wondered these last three weeks just how Vettel would have reacted at Silverstone if he had found himself in Webber’s shoes and the team giving the Australian all the new toys first? I think I got my answer at the end of this race today in Hungary. If Christian Horner is true to his word, and favours the driver within the team with the more points, I can only see Vettel becoming more and more fracturous. I can’t wait!

    20. Vetel should have a penalty in Germany for his start at the last GP. Today he was complaining for his drive-t ¿? when it was just his fault.
      Come on, this guy can not be a class 1 driver, too many mistakes and pole-positions wasted.
      He should think about not beein able to overtake Alonso in 30 laps with a car 1sec faster.

    21. A drive thru penalty is cheaper than $100,000 fine for showing team tactics to manipulate the result. The problem was he was meant to give mark a gap on the restart but not that big a gap that he would break the 10 car length rule. Perhaps the team wrongly assumed he knew the rule. So in this scenario, which is my speculation, seb might be angry at mark for taking off so quickly and the team for not explaining it. He would feel he followed team orders and been robbed of the win. Note the team advised him on the radio to say nothing on the way in, they would talk about it. Yep,…get the story right ” i was sleeping” to avoid a fine. And i cant help suspecting mark, being an older and wiser head, might have known exactly how to play his part to ensure it was himself in 1st. I am sure he would have known the restart rule.

      1. That was my first thought about why it had happened but there was no team radio indicating it had happened (hardly surprising given Vettel’s apparently wasn’t working) and Horner denied any such instruction had been given.

        1. Even for a low clever driver there is no need to comment by radio that strategy, your team mate has not pit yet so give him enough gap and we will make a 1 2 victory and if somebody ask say “my fault I was sleeping”. Someone may think you are and idiot but if you win at the end who cares.

          But in Ferrari there is no way to do such a clever movement and the need to say phrases like “comfirm you understood” after hearing Massa´s question to his box “wich position is webber after his pit stop?”… a driver who is more than a second lap faster than you? and after 43 laps? are you sleeping too?

          sleeping and driving should be banned!!!

    22. One thing which many of us forget is that he is relatively a ROOKIE against his championship rivals so I think he will take sometime to get on things. One thing he needs to learn that he need to keep his cool under bad conditions when you lose something you can’t do anything but do that next best thing,so second place today is what he all deserve.

      1. dont you mean 3rd?

        everyone would be happy if he did come 2nd.

        1. Yes I meant second, it was my mistake.

    23. Mark saw this coming . With Seb so far behind, if he could make a quick pullaway after the SC came in, there would be a good chance Vettel would be unaware of what was hapenning, the distance could be stretched and Vettel could have been penalised.
      Seb should have been closer and been in a position to take Mark from behind the SC. Vettel probably did not want to risk another coming together with Mark.
      I just find it so infuriating that Seb loses because he always tries to do the right thing, Mark instead is a fighter and will put Seb into the barriers if need be.
      Seb needs to learn to fight!

      1. Mark must have seen him with his eyes closed and took off you reckon? LOL

        Mark could not get any further away than the Safety Car, it was Sebs fault and no one else but himself to blame.

        you dont let another car get this far infront.
        http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v132/lethalnz/F1%20racing/?action=view&current=SafetyCar.jpg

        1. I reckon Mark saw the distance between them and the opportunity. I dont think that’s wrong , it does show that Seb must watch out for himself.

    24. Chris Powell
      2nd August 2010, 9:20

      you’re joking right? lol.

    25. To be honest i enjoy watching Vettel suffer. I hope Mark pips him again in spa!

    Comments are closed.