Sebastian Vettel extends Red Bull contract to 2014

2011 F1 season

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Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull, 2011

World champion Sebastian Vettel has confirmed he will stay at Red Bull until the end of 2014.

Vettel had been the subject of speculation over the winter around a future move to Ferrari.

The contract extension announced today means he will stay with Red Bull for four seasons.

Vettel joined the team in 2009.

View the list of 2011 F1 drivers and teams.

    Image © Red Bull/Getty images

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    Keith Collantine
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    108 comments on “Sebastian Vettel extends Red Bull contract to 2014”

    1. He still hasn’t had a shave, though. He should be contractually obligated to get rid of the facial fungus.

      1. Like McLaren’s drivers are…

        1. Button shaved because his girlfriend made him shave. It could be worse, though – Fernando Alonso shaved because his mother made him do it.

          As for Lewis Hamilton, he shaved, too. He then went back with a felt-tip pen and drew a line around his jaw. Probably so he could fit in when he makes a cameo in his girlfriend’s next music video.

          1. I always understood that it was McLaren’s policy.

            There are no team members with facial hair, and I can’t remember any (apart from Nige’s tasche and Norbert Haug’s late 90’s tasche). DC only sprouted his stubble once he went to Red Bull. Didn’t Mateschitz tell DC “I’m not going to tell you to shave every day” when he joined RBR?

            1. Did McLaren also use to have a short hair policy? I remember their two champion drivers in 2007 had very short hair

            2. Didn’t Alonso grow a beard at McLaren just to annoy them after they fell out mid-season?

              Anyway I think it’s pretty obvious it’s McLaren’s policy.

              Alonso 06 – http://bit.ly/hN1f7V
              Alonso 07 (McLaren) – http://bit.ly/fD5GYz
              Alonso 08 – http://bit.ly/hoewfs

            3. Lewis doesn’t have facial hair yet. They eliminated the chance of that happening while they were designing his DNA code.

            4. News have leaked they were designing some biological warfare agent, but that’s what we got instead

            5. Instead? Waddayamean instead?

            6. Alonso 06 – http://bit.ly/hN1f7V
              Alonso 07 (McLaren) – http://bit.ly/fD5GYz
              Alonso 08 – http://bit.ly/hoewfs

              He still looks like a kid in that ’07 pick, but more like he does now in ’08. The whole McLaren stint must have aged him a bit/taken its toll.

          2. Makes you wonder…what would actually happen if they defied McLaren? Get the boot? Doubt it!

            1. They’d probably get the hairdryer treatment from Uncle Ron…a fate worse than death I imagine.

          3. As for Lewis Hamilton, he shaved, too. He then went back with a felt-tip pen and drew a line around his jaw.

            :-) It certainly always looks that way.

            1. Jenson wasnt clean shaved when he won @ Melb & Malaysia last year. So im not sure if the Mclaren clean shaved policy exists

            2. I think it’s one of the things they’ve relaxed since Whitmarsh took over the F1 operation.

          4. Button shaved because his girlfriend made him shave. It could be worse, though – Fernando Alonso shaved because his mother made him do it.

            As for Lewis Hamilton, he shaved, too. He then went back with a felt-tip pen and drew a line around his jaw. Probably so he could fit in when he makes a cameo in his girlfriend’s next music video.

            LOL

            1. “I think it’s one of the things they’ve relaxed since Whitmarsh took over the F1 operation.”

              In other words – since he turned them into a pale shadow of their former-selves.

    2. A nice gesture – but in reality means little, as Ferrari, Fernando, Kimi, Jenson, Williams etc have shown in the past. In this big money world contracts can be bought out with great ease.

      1. Another good thing about Red Bull is They extended Newey’s contract either.
        That could have been another decision maker, or even a sin equa non on their contracts (either way).

        1. So Newey comes with the package…. sweet for RB.

      2. In this big money world contracts can be bought out with great ease.

        Do you honestly think Red Bull will simply let Vettel go? So long as they keep building title-worthy cars, they’ll be short to keep him as close as tey can.

        1. If they can’t build a winning car and he wants out of his contract , they won’t stop him.

    3. Best decision, if he went to Ferrari to replace Massa it would destroy him.

      Let’s see if Red Bull can keep up the cars pace though.

      1. I disagree – although Fernando wouldn’t have it. If it was Alonso in the other Red Bull in Turkey – I think we would have seen something catastrophic.

        1. It would be impossible for Alonso and Vettel to crash because Fernando would already be so far ahead that Vettel wouldn’t get close.

          I love being biased!!!

          1. It would be impossible for Alonso and Vettel to crash because Fernando would already be so far ahead that Vettel wouldn’t get close.

            You were watching in Singapore, right?

            1. Yes I was watching a Red Bull superior to the Ferrari not being able to get past….

            2. Gotta agree with Riise.. (I’m biased too btw)

              Seb would have been no match for Fernando in an RB6. I actually hope Seb goes to Ferrari while Alonso is still there.. would definitely be an interesting battle.

            3. Like Lewis was no match for Fernando in the Mc… oh wait…

            4. Red Bull superior to the Ferrari not being able to get past

              You mean like the time Alonso couldn’t pass Petrov?

            5. Agree with RIISE too. Seb is simply no match for Fernando. Stay with RB Seb! With superior car it will look like you are great…

            6. Yes I was watching a Red Bull superior to the Ferrari not being able to get past….

              A far cry from Alonso being so far ahead of Vettel that Vettel would not be able to see him, wouldn’t you say?

              By the end of 2010, Ferrari and Red Bull were fairly comparable on pace. How else do you explain Ferrari being able to keep up with them in Singapore, Korea and Brazil?

          2. LOL, nice one.

            1. Touche! ;)

          3. @Mike.. we are not comparing him to Lewis now are we?

      2. let’s hope Kubica will join ferrari now from 2012-2014 at least

    4. Well, what about Webber then?

      1. What about Webber?

      2. Webber’s already said he’s taking one year at a time and seeing what happens. He’s 33, 34 now? That doesn’t mean however he’s got to quite now he’s in his thirties, I mean he’s a fit guy, he could be with us for another decade yet you never know.

        I suppose as a young champion Vettel’s in a different position where he absolutely needs a secure long term position with a top team.

        1. Especially since there’s been a lot of talk about a move to Ferrari of late. Vettel has talked it down, but Red Bull were obviously eager to stitch him up for another few years.

          1. But interestingly, Autosport had Marko quoted with saying this gets them “everyone key to the succes” tied to 2014!

            Only to be expected of him, but it clearly shows where Webber is with the team management.

      3. What about him? Red Bull are under no obligation to offer him a contract just because they have signed Vettel up until 2015.

      4. His contract is only for this year. Murmurs are though he might want to try for 2012 as well, and Horner was receptive of the idea a few weeks ago as long as he was still quick.

        The new Vettel contract might be contingent on them not re-signing Webber though…

        1. The new Vettel contract might be contingent on them not re-signing Webber though…

          I doubt it. Vettel doesn’t seem the petty type.

    5. As I understand it they also locked in Newey until 2014 no?

      1. In that case we might be looking at Vettel as a 5 time champion by the end of 2014… uh oh

        1. Who knows, maybe McLaren will bring something extreme working right out of the box for next year.
          Or Ferrari/Alonso get the team orders working properly to make it nr. 3 and 4 for him.

          1. Newey’s time is over. The HRT secret weapon is here!

        2. I just shuddered when I read that.

          1. Yeah that is a scary thought. Vettel is one of my favourite drivers (after Alonso & Kubica), but the thought of that kid having a dominant car for 5 straight seasons, while Fernando, Robert and Lewis struggle in their respective teams…. is just tragic.

        3. I’d love to see that anyway!

      2. Yup. And some 50 other key people. Source: http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/89911

        1. I wonder what Newey gets paid a year.

          1. Which is exactly the same thought that has been running through my mind now!

          2. jsw11984 (@jarred-walmsley)
            14th March 2011, 19:13

            More than you or I will make in a lifetime

            1. jsw11984 (@jarred-walmsley)
              15th March 2011, 5:17

              Wouldn’t surprise me

    6. Good move for both parties. And a good move to ensure either Ferrari cannot sign him, or they need to pay a lot of money to release him.

      I still think he will end up there at some point. :-)

      I imagine they will be competitive until at least (you never know with new engine regs) 2013.

      If hes able to add a little more racecraft to his game, he’ll be a very formidable opponent for the rest of the guys for the coming years.

      Hes certainly got the pace, just needs a little polishing around the edges.

      1. I think Ferrari would rather grab up the next big talent instead.

        1. Are we so hard on people that the youngest world champion in the history of the sport is no longer considered to be the next big thing (without having raced a single race with the number 1 on his car)! ;)

    7. The only way I see Vettel at Ferrari is if Alonso isn’t there.

      1. And he is with Ferrari for some time. Massa is too good to leave. Therefore until 2014 Vettel will be away from Ferrari.

        1. Massa is too subordinate for Ferrari to want him to leave.

          That’s what the cynic in me says ;)

          1. Massa is too subordinate for Ferrari to want him to leave.

            that ^

      2. Andrew Martel
        15th March 2011, 2:00

        Thank god, I don’t want to see Vettel in red. Thats coming from a Vettel, not Ferrari, fan.

        1. For fear that your favourite driver will be beaten by Alonso? ;)

    8. No surprise here…there was a ton of debate last year as to whether or not there was fairness and equal treatment at Red Bull…at more than one point Horner stated that there was fair treatment on the team, but that if MW won the WDC he could see him retiring on top after which the team would be centered around SV.

      Hard to argue that there wasn’t fair treatment on the team given that both Red Bull drivers had a WDC shot going into the last race of the season, but it is also hard to imagine that from here on in MW will truly get equal treatment to the reigning WDC who has just been even more engrained in the team to the tune of a multi-year contract extension. That said, if MW feels slighted we’ll sure hear about it from him.

      This move makes absolute sense, perhaps is the only move that makes sense for SV…any other move would have been trying to fix what isn’t broken…Red Bull is ‘his’ team right now and for the next little while…he’s a lucky young man and has all the tools in place for more WDC’s…up to him to not squander it…up to the likes of MW and FA and FM to do something about it…

    9. Considering Horner came out and admitted Red Bull will be built around Vettel for years to come (when the season was still on-going, no less), it’s the least he can do. Probably means we won’t see him measured up against any of the other contemporary greats for a long while yet though.

    10. Dream team. With Newey designing and Vettel driving, Red Bull have everything they need to stay on top.

      1. Great team but less than perfect. Newey’s stuff is fastest but not the most reliable, and reliability almost cost RBR the WCC. Seb is under suspicion of being too hard on the stuff, as he broke it a lot more than Mark (but it maybe was just bad luck).

        Seb is undeniably quite fast but not a great overtaker, His strong suit is getting the pole and winning from there, not struggling for position Anyway he’s still very young and will surely improve.

        What we don’t need is a decade of overwhelming dominance by a driver/team

    11. I wonder who is going to be his teammate, Der Hulk vielleicht? strange enough it would really surprise me if someone from the current Torro Rosso line-up is really going to drive for Red Bull.

    12. Did everyone see German TV’s Vettel Finger video? The foam fingers are pretty funny. I bet there will be a few of those in the crowd at Nurburgring this year: http://youtu.be/DxyfwioAgzg

      1. That’s a crackerjack answer to an interesting qsueiotn

    13. If i was Kubica i would be kicking myself right now.. If my leg worked ..

    14. I must say, the Red Bull team, with a fast German driver in Sebastian, does have remnants of the 2000-05 Ferrari days with Michael.

      I’m not sure if we’ll see Vettel in a Ferrari, but if Mercedes can consistently become a race winning car, then I wouldn’t mind betting that he would like to drive for them, being a German team.

    15. Ralph Schumacher
      14th March 2011, 19:09

      Vettel is in trouble this season. With the likes of Alo, WEB, MSC and HAM (LOL) challenging for poles, he might just find himself starting from P2 or worse still, row 2. You know what that means right??? Vettel has to overtake. You know what that means right??? Carnage. Haha

      1. It’ll be interesting to see RBR’s qualy strategy. Like you say, Vettel basically needs pole to be able to win, which means he’ll have to start on softs. Will his race then be compromised by say Massa from the fouth row on hard tyres? Regardless, i think vettel will struggle in the midfield for segments of races while pitstops take place.

      2. [quote] Vettel is in trouble this season. With the likes of Alo, WEB, MSC and HAM (LOL) challenging for poles, he might just find himself starting from P2 [/quote]

        what trouble are you talking about ?

        wasnt he competing against these guys last season ?

        whats different this year lol

        1. Ralph Schumacher
          15th March 2011, 2:41

          the difference this year is that the Ferrari is competitive so that means MAS and ALO will be up there as well. Last year all he had to do was bash into WEB.

        2. What’s different is also that the McLaren car this year seems to be more of an unknown quantity than the Ferrari, RBR or the Mercedes. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a chance the MP4-26 is so dominant it makes the F2002 look bad. But given the way both Jenson and Lewis have been complaining, I don’t see that happening.

          1. i want to be a formula 1 driver

    16. yeh you’re right. i cant remember vettel ever overtaking somebody cleanely or well

    17. Telegraph has just claimed that Horner might in the future perhaps possibly may be interested in Hamilton. I don’t know what’s the better joke the story or generally British newspaper’s coverage of F1 http://tinyurl.com/6d9jm6y

      But say this somehow came true (“anything can happen in F1 and it usually does”) how do people think Vettel would do against Lewis?

      1. bring it on! good bye and good night Vettel

    18. I wouldn’t rate Vettel outside of anything but the current spec RBR, he’s a fast driver but a terrible racer. RBR are the only team that can afford to have such persons in their cockpits because of, well Newey and the current regulations.

      I think we’ll see RBR dominance (more or less) until the 2013 regulations come in.

      1. Rule changes?
        That’s Adrian Neweys specialty, so as long as he’s at RB they will dominate, I’m afraid

    19. Where did this idea that Vettel is a terrible racer come in? Do the terms “youngest race winner” and “youngest world champion” mean nothing?

      Let us not forget that Sebastian is only 23, and has a long way to go yet. In 2008 he won a race in a Toro Rosso, and since then he has shown he is a very capable driver in terms of speed and technical knowledge. Yes, I agree that he has to learn to convert that into race wins more often, but he is far from a terrible racer.

      And that’s not a biased opinion, I’m 100% a Jenson Button fan.

      1. Where did this idea that Vettel is a terrible racer come in?

        I think this is a reference to ‘racer’ in the ‘good at overtaking’ sense, rather than shortcomings in any other areas of his game.

        As I’ve said before I think his biggest weakness – or, at least, the area in which he still has the most to prove – is executing clean passes when the pressure is on.

        1. That is certainly what I mean by ‘racer’.

          Don’t get me started on Button.

    20. Vettel will have to overtake this season, the new tyre rules make it a must if your strategy is to work effectively.

      He’s not the best at overtaking, is he?

      And I don’t think getting pole position will be nearly as important as it used to be.

    21. I think that is a good step forward for both him & the team. He is with the Red Bull teams for 3 season (1 with Torro Rosso) & knows them inside out. & we all know that he is the team’s future, in the coming years what the battle we may see is which driver & team combination wins the WC from here as we have

      Alonso- Ferrari
      Hamilton- Mclaren
      Roseberg- Mercedes
      Vettel- Red Bull
      Kubica- Renault (after he comes back from his recovery)

    22. Vettel – the least inspiring driver on the grid and the fore-runner in more ways than one, of the Play-station driver’s generation.

      Put him in an early 90’s car and he’d cry in terror.

      He’s a spoilt child. And a terrible racer.

      1. Least inspiring driver on the grid? I know he can make mistakes under pressure, but such a comment shows lack of respect for an undeniably lightning quick driver. He’s a top three driver.

        1. Yes – the least inspiring driver. Why should I show him any respect. It’s my opinion.

          He’s never won a race from anywhere other than pole. Never had to deal with any adversity in his career, has absolutely no personality and he waves his finger in an incredibly ungainly manner after winning a race. He’s been wrapped in cotton-wool his entire career and has the general demeanor of one of those irritating skate-boarder types.

          He’s also a trenchant buffoon.

          The fact that he’s also the BBC’s Jake Humphrey’s clear favourite amongst the drivers, lowers my respect for him ever more.

          I’ll wait for the backlash.

          1. He so often wins from pole because he had the speed and talent to take pole in the first place. And this appears to work, since in such a short career he’s already won 10 times and is world champion.

            You don’t like the guy. You hate the “Vettel finger”. You find him annoying. I do not agree, but that is all your opinion, which is okay. But what isn’t okay is a lack of appreciation for talent, which Vettel has demonstrated since his first race for BMW Sauber in abundance.

            Plus, throwing around terms like “trenchant buffoon” does not help your argument, instead making it look silly.

            1. Is it really ‘not okay’ to not appreciate his talent. More often than not he has won pole as he has clearly had the fastest car on the grid and a team-mate that does not quite have the ability to match him. I am not denying he is a talented driver – clearly one of the faster drivers on the grid.

              Indeed – I just find him rather underwhelming and childish.

              I’m really sorry if this offends you. You’ve clearly decided to be an erstwhile arbiter for F1 Fanatic.

            2. No, I’m not being offended, just offering a different point of view. I can see how Seb can come off as childish at times, but I guess he is still only 23 and is likely to calm down and mature.

      2. and WELTMEISTER!!!

    23. Fair enough, I can admit that he’s not always the best at overtaking, as demonstrated in Spa last year! But then again, if you look at Hamilton, a so-called master, he didn’t make that many great overtakes last season either….Monza comes to mind.
      Every driver has their shortcomings, but Vettel does have a lot of time to improve on that.

      @Mef. Clearly, you hate Hamilton as well then, even more so in fact, by your logic. As he has literally been moulded in McLaren’s image. He was straight into a good car from the off. At least Vettel started in a Toro Rosso. He just proved that he was very good, very quickly.

      With young driver programmes, this kind of racing driver will probably pop up a lot more in the future, so you’d better get used to it.

      1. @JamieFranklin F1. You’re perceptive.

    24. We dont have an idea how close the competition will be this year ;)

      you cant assume that based on testing :roll:

    25. eerm..

      that was a reply @Ralph Schumacher

    26. Imho, Vettel has definitely made some mistakes that have caused some to wonder if he is the full package, or if in fact he can crack under pressure. And some debated if the way the team has coddled him and tried to deflect the blame from him when it clearly was his fault (eg. taking MW and himself out that one race) has been the healthy way to develope this driver. I think time will tell if this WDC he now owns was a fluke or if he can back it up with more, but at a minimum, as a WDC, I think he deserves the benefit of the doubt that he can and will learn from his experiences, and grow, and get better…from here on in he is a WDC and that should change things for him for the better not the worse, unless he proves he truly cannot deal with pressure even with experience, which I doubt will happen.

      By comparison, LH did everything possible to lose the WDC one year, and in fact did lose it after leading the WDC chase with a few races to go…then he did everything possible to lose the WDC the next year, and only squeaked it through on a day when FM did everything he needed to do, and Glock did a lap 20 seconds slower than his previous, and LH snatched the trophy out of FM’s hands by a hair.

      MS can’t seem to go three races in a row without moving somebody off the track in a questionable fashion

    27. …oops…submitted that comment a bit prematurely…to finish that thought…MS is a 7 time WDC and has never seemed to go three races in a row without moving somebody off the track in a questionable fashion…JB won his WDC on the strength of the double diffuser that most thought would be deemed illegal at the start of the season and he got the bulk of his WDC points before the other teams could catch up and nearly lost the WDC in the end as a result…ie. he barely drove his way to that WDC…

      Point being, all kinds of WDC winners didn’t do everything perfectly…ie. SV deserves credit as a WDC and support that he may improve and up his game with a WDC under his belt and more experience…and he’ll surely get that with his contract extension at Red Bull…he is I’m sure the envy of many on the grid right now…

    28. To be honest, I’d say Jenson was a much more worth champion than Lewis was. Jenson won the 6 out of 7 of the first races, and although had an iffy middle season, his drive in Interlagos proved that he was in fact deserved of the Championship.

      Lewis, on the other hand, won less races than Felipe Massa in 2008 and was less deserving than Felipe, because Massa did everything possible to secure the Championship in that final race, whereas Hamilton got lucky at the last corner.

      In my mind, no-one really stood out from anyone else in 2010. Both Jenson and Lewis didn’t do the job for McLaren, Webber was too much of a whiner, so for me that left Fernando and Seb as the two who actually deserved the crown.

      Alonso drove a stunning second half of the season, but in the last race, his performance was a little lack luster. Vettel may have made mistakes but statistics don’t lie. He won the most amount of races, equal to Alonso, and by the end of the season, he had the most points.

      Also, just a little mention. If we’re talking about mistakes, then what about Button’s 2010 challenge? He was the only driver not to get a DNF from his own accord. He retired twice, once from McLaren’s incident in Monaco, and another from a shunt from Vettel in Spa. Without both of those, Jenson would have been a lot higher in the standings by the end of the season…

    29. Equal treatment in Red Bull Hey!
      Vettel getting $16 million next year whilst Webber Getting $8 million.
      Maybe I’m biased but I though they were pretty close all year and Webber was leading championship for MOST of the year and Vettel ONCE ( I know, when it counted).

      Poor Kubica top 5 driver and should be in ferrari with Alonso who’s still the best driver followed by Hamilton.

    30. Karen Stevenson
      29th May 2011, 22:25

      Well done Seb- you are cool calm & collective, oh and also great looking

      Karen x

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