Tag: vettel

Vettel gets in trouble in Turkey for driving, then drinking

Filed under: Motorsports, Government/Legal, Middle East

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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Sebastian Vettel takes Infiniti for a spin at the Shanghai International Circuit [w/video]

Filed under: Motorsports, Sedan, China, Marketing/Advertising, Videos, Crossover, Infiniti, Celebrities, Luxury

Sebastian Vettel in the Infiniti G37

Sebastian Vettel drives the Infiniti G37 – Click above for high-res image gallery, click here to watch video

What’s the point in an automaker pouring millions into an F1 team if it can’t leverage a little star power? In Infiniti’s case, it’s not even running its own F1 team or even supplying engines. Instead, it’s sponsoring the Red Bull Racing outfit that’s out there defending both its titles. (That said, we wouldn’t be surprised if Infiniti’s involvement turned into an engine rebranding initiative for next season.)

As any marketing whiz could tell you, sponsorship is only worth as much as you promote it. So while Red Bull’s world champion Sebastian Vettel was in Shanghai for the Chinese Grand Prix, he took a couple of Infiniti’s finest for a spin.

Vettel being Vettel, he didn’t just drive around the block: he took to the Shanghai International Circuit. (Or, at least an Autocross setup on the circuit’s back lot.) And while he wasn’t about to set any lap records behind the wheel of the G37 sedan or FX50 crossover, he seemed to enjoy the experience, hanging the G37’s tail out making some smoke for the crowd. Follow the jump to watch the video footage and check out the still shots in the gallery below.

Gallery: Sebastian Vettel and Infiniti at the 2011 Chinese Grand Prix

[Source: Infiniti]

Continue reading Sebastian Vettel takes Infiniti for a spin at the Shanghai International Circuit [w/video]

Sebastian Vettel takes Infiniti for a spin at the Shanghai International Circuit [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 24 Apr 2011 12:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Sebastian Vettel on the benefits of KERS, adjustable rear wing

Filed under: Europe, Technology, Videos, Racing

Red Bull 2011

Sebastian Vettel on KERS – Click above to view video after the jump

Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel, winner of last weekend’s Formula 1 opening round in Australia, has taken to YouTube to explain what the addition of KERS and and an adjustable rear wing means for drivers. Technically speaking, KERS is good for a six-second, 80-horsepower boost.

According to Vettel, that’s best used as a way to help get off the grid ahead of the pack, or sneak through a gap in traffic at the start of a race. Otherwise, it can be used to hold off an attack during the race or as an edge going for the overtake.

The adjustable rear wing is only available as an overtaking aid at certain points in a race within a specified distance of an opponent. It’s designed to reduce the increased drag when a driver steps out of the slipstream and into clean air. By reducing the wing’s pitch, the driver can lose some of the increased resistance. Click past the jump for Vettel’s explanation.

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: Sebastian Vettel on the benefits of KERS, adjustable rear wing

Video: Sebastian Vettel on the benefits of KERS, adjustable rear wing originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 02 Apr 2011 11:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vettel snags pole for Australian GP

Filed under: Motorsports, Europe, Australia, Racing

2011 Red Bull RB72011 Red Bull RB7 – Click above for high-res image gallery

Red Bull is once again looking strong as it heads into Formula One’s opening round in Australia. Red Bull ace and last year’s champ Sebastien Vettel took pole position for Sunday’s race by nearly a second in Saturday qualifying. Mark Webber, Vettel’s teammate and Australia’s hometown hero, wound up third behind Lewis Hamilton.

Red Bull claims that neither of its drivers used their KERS (Kinetic Energy Regeneration System) during qualifying, which is usually good for .3 seconds a lap. That means, in theory anyway, Vettel has a potential 1.5 second advantage over the competition when the green flag waves tomorrow.

McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton is sandwiched between the two Red Bulls in second, while teammate and 2009 champ Jenson Button sits fourth behind Webber. Fernando Alonso is fifth in the first of the Ferraris ahead of Vitaly Petrov for Renault. Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg is seventh, ahead of the second Ferrari of Felipe Massa. Kamui Kobayashi sits ninth for Sauber and Sebastien Buemi rounds out the top 10 for Toro Rosso.

Gallery: 2011 Red Bull RB7

[Source: AutoWeek]

Vettel snags pole for Australian GP originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 26 Mar 2011 15:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Channel your inner Vettel with the Playseats F1 Red Bull Racing Sim chair

Filed under: Motorsports, Etc., Technology, Racing

Playseat F1 Red Bull

Everyone knows that driving simulators, no matter how good they are, are just that: simulators. They don’t quite get the experience nailed, and they won’t make you the next Sebastien Vettel. Still, Red Bull and Playseats have teamed up to make your experience that much closer to Vettel’s with the release of this Red Bull racing simulator.

Playseats has nailed the details for this setup, putting the seat in the same location relative to the pedals and steering wheel as in a real Formula 1 car. The best news is that Playseats makes the set up for a variety of systems, meaning you can have one for Forza, Gran Turismo 5 and F1 2010, should you have the funds and the desire.

The funds are the big issue here. Playseats charges $1,300 for the system on sale. Regular price is $1,400, not to mention the cost of a TV to make this worth while. Looks like it’s good, old-fashioned joysticks for us, then.

[Source: CrunchGear]

Channel your inner Vettel with the Playseats F1 Red Bull Racing Sim chair originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 18:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Sebastian Vettel’s virtual tour of the Korean Grand Prix

Filed under: Motorsports, Videos, South Korea

Sebastian Vettel laps the Korean F1 circuit – Click above to watch video after the jump

Karun Chandhok was the first driver to lap the track that will be used for this month’s Korean Grand Prix. Now Sebastian Vettel has gotten his turn. On this go-round, it sounds like the track is still so slippery that revs were a bigger issue than anything else.

With the same camera angle as Chandhok’s run, there isn’t much more to see. The track is further along than a month ago, but it’s still not going to be pretty for the folks who make the journey into the South Korean bush to watch it live. While we figure out how to say “cat fight” and “ghost town” in Korean, you can entertain yourselves with the video after the jump.

[Source: Red Bull]

Continue reading Video: Sebastian Vettel’s virtual tour of the Korean Grand Prix

Video: Sebastian Vettel’s virtual tour of the Korean Grand Prix originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 23 Oct 2010 14:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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