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Vettel drinks champagne on the podium in Turkey

Ruh-roh. It looks like Sebastian Vettel hasn’t quite ingratiated himself with his hosts in Istanbul, though there’s no telling what (if any) repercussions might ensue.

According to reports, Vettel was told before the start of this weekend’s Turkish Grand Prix that, if he were to win, he would not be allowed to drink the champagne. Not because alcohol isn’t permitted in Turkey – while in Abu Dhabi and Bahrain the traditional bubbly is replaced with a sparkling non-alcoholic beverage in deference to the ban on alcohol under Sharia (Muslim law), Turkey, while predominantly Muslim, is a more liberal country. No, the instructions were given specifically to Vettel because of a new Turkish law that places the minimum drinking age at 24. And Vettel (both the youngest race winner and the youngest world champion in F1 history) is just 23. As you can see above, drink champagne he did.

Now Vettel isn’t the youngest driver on the grid this year. Toro Rosso’s Sebastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari and Sauber’s Sergio Perez are all younger, but given their track records compared to Vettel’s… well, let’s just say the bookies weren’t giving even odds on that particular bet.

The restrictions in Turkey extend as well to a ban on advertising alcohol, forcing some teams to temporarily jettison their liquor sponsors (much as they did when tobacco advertising was banned in certain countries, but not others). McLaren, for example, is sponsored by Johnnie Walker scotch whisky, as Force India is by Whyte & Mackay, while Sauber is sponsored by Jose Cuervo tequila. (Ferrari is apparently no longer sponsored by Martini, while we assume Vettel and Webber simply left the vodka out of their Red Bulls for this round.)

Will Vettel face some sort of punishment at the hands of the Turkish authorities? We’d hate to think what that would entail, but one way or another, he’ll be legal by next year’s grand prix. That is, assuming the race takes place again next year; an increase in the fees by Bernie Ecclestone could mean that this year’s was the last for Istanbul Park.

Vettel gets in trouble in Turkey for driving, then drinking originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 10 May 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Click above to find out what the Autoblog team is thankful for

We here at Autoblog are a mighty thankful bunch, and we really shouldn’t need just one day to sit down and consider what it is that we are truly just pleased as pumpkin pie for. But, in case you hadn’t noticed, today is, in fact, Thanksgiving here in the good ol’ United States of America, and so we’ve put together this list of what team Autoblog is most grateful for this year – check it out by clicking on the big inflatable bird above.

Of course, this isn’t an exhaustive list by any means. For instance, we’re all rather grateful that there’s still an automotive industry – and perhaps more specifically an American automobile industry – for us to be obsessive about. Most of us are also happy that Top Gear USA has finally gotten off the ground, and we’re hopeful that it proves entertaining over the long haul.

Sure, there’s more. But we’re also interested in knowing what you are most thankful for in 2010. Go ahead, leave us all a note in ‘Comments.’

[Image: Eschipul via CC 2.0]

It’s Turkey Day, and Autoblog is thankful for… originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 25 Nov 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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