Roberto Chinchero, Motorsport journalist, gives us a precious jewel: a new interview with Sebastian Vettel. Unfortunately today we will not see Seb driving Lucilla and darting through the curves of Albert Park, in Australia. So we decided to share this interesting interview with you. Enjoy the reading!
One of the effects that created the arrival in Formula 1 of a generation of very young drivers, is to accelerate the aging of those who preceded them. We are not talking about performance, speed or aspects related to what happens on the track, but just about naked and raw registry. Staying connected to the real world, a link that sometimes jumps when you think in F1 mode, a 32-year-old sportsman is in full swing, and that's what you think if you have the opportunity to speak with Sebastian Vettel. He, who was a champion of earliness in the past, passes to be a veteran because in fact he has arrived in Melbourne to start what is already his thirteenth season in Formula 1.
But if you look well beyond that beard (which took years to become the right one) there is still a lot of that boy who twelve years ago amazed the world by winning at Monza and doing it with a Toro Rosso.
The four world titles have not changed him much, the three children have, but as Seb points out, woe if you do not change in life.
With Sebastian you can talk about everything, the answers are never taken for granted, and over time the topics of comparison have increased as the number of Grand Prix races
On the eve of Melbourne, he gave Motorsport.com a long interview, which we propose to you in episodes, a chat that preceded the announcement of McLaren which led to the cancellation of the Australian Grand Prix. We could only start from what has held and will keep the bank.
When there are exceptional events, you always get there: run or not run. In your opinion, what is the role of sport in these moments?
"This sport is my life, consequently Formula 1 is also of great importance, but obviously I understand that for the general public, Formula 1 is a two-hour race that takes place every two weeks. In the end what we do entertains so many people, and although in this situation it is impossible to understand what awaits us and make predictions about what will happen, we try to keep as much normality as possible. I believe that when people find themselves forced to change their daily habits, it can be nice to offer something that people are used to, hoping that together they will also give some positive emotions.
And how does Sebastian Vettel live the current situation?
"You go on, taking precautions as far as possible, but under certain circumstances you put yourself in other people's hands. We all took a plane to come here to Australia, I don't think anyone I think came by swimming or boating. So we relied on those who work and manage air transport, and it's our choice, nobody forced us to board a flight to Melbourne, nobody pushed me by forcing me to board the plane, in the end coming here is a choice that each of us made freely. We are here to do what we love, which is to run, but obviously we cannot but be aware of what is happening and we must adapt to what is happening like everyone else".
A Formula 1 driver constantly lives with the dream of becoming world champion. In a context like the present one, what changes, if it changes, in the head?
“When you are 15 years old and racing on a kart, the prospects are very different compared to when you are 30 years old or older. The path of life teaches us a lot, in some cases you grow early, in others maybe a little later, I think it is a very important process for the formation of a person. I can say that as far as I'm concerned it would be a mistake to think of Formula 1 as the center of the Universe and that the world revolves around it. Today I have three children and I'm old enough to understand that this is not the case. Formula 1 is definitely my passion was and is a huge part of my life, but it is not the center of it all.
In these days we have seen markedly the difference in vision between younger drivers and those who are older and have already established a sporting path. You, Kimi and Lewis have expressed a different vision compared to the young people of Formula 1. Same passion but wider views: is it correct?
"Yes, but it is normal that it is like this, as I said before, life teaches you many things. When I was 10 or 15, racing only existed for me, nothing but racing. Everything revolved around that, while today things have changed a little. This does not mean that my passion has weakened, indeed, but surely I am able to go beyond the world of motorsport. The horizons are broadening and you are more aware of many things. Thanks to this job I had the opportunity to travel a lot seeing a good slice of the world, and this allowed me to think, to see other cultures and to get in touch with events distant from me. I think it is an opportunity that helps a lot of maturation ”.
Are you starting your 13th season, how do you feel compared to your first Melbourne in 2008?
"I was Sebastian Bourdais' teammate, he finished the race in the points area and I found myself turned at the first corner and ... if I remember correctly against the barriers. It was a race in which many other drivers retired, so if I had finished the race regularly I would probably have taken home points. It was a black day for me, but for Toro Rosso it turned out to be a positive weekend thanks to the points scored by my teammate ".
Are the sensations on the eve of the race that opens the season still those of twelve years ago or has everything changed today?
“Some aspects are still similar, but in general the feeling is different. I remember when I first got here I was a lot more nervous, I didn't know what would happen, and I didn't know the track ... so there were a lot of question marks. Today these doubts are gone and in general I know that no matter how unforeseen there may be, there will be nothing I have not done previously, an aspect that helps to be safer. But when qualifying and the race arrive, well the adrenaline goes up and it's always exciting, especially when you are on the eve of the first race of the World Cup. Let's say that over time you learn to follow your own routine, you are generally more relaxed, but you are not indifferent when you feel the countdown and you know that qualifying or the race is starting, and it's nice that it is so, for me it is always like this and I like it is".
Source: Motorsport
Journalist: Roberto Chinchero
Translation: Sebforever587
Image: credits to Motorsport
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