With Red Bull the latest to hold a trophy aloft this year, yet another potential 2012 champion has emerged. In theory, back to back world champion Sebastian Vettel, the Bahrain grand prix winner, was always a contender for a third drivers' crown this year. But his RB8 was not a race winner until Sunday, after McLaren, Mercedes and even Ferrari had tasted the first victory spoils so far this season.
It was said that - amid the extraordinary field of 2012 - Adrian Newey's latest creation was simply in the league of other midfielders including Lotus, Sauber, and perhaps even Williams and Toro Rosso. But as Dr Helmut Marko remarked at the chequered flag: "Those pronounced dead live longest!"
"We never wrote them off," McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh insisted to Germany's Auto Motor und Sport, "because we knew that they had a good car and that they only needed to find the key. "This season is really crazy; more exciting than we would like!" the Briton admitted. "And now we have to say Lotus are also contenders."
German Vettel won in Bahrain from pole, but even he admitted that the weekend was a surprise. "After Australia it seemed that McLaren had a supercar and it would be difficult to beat them, at least in the short term," he is quoted by O Estado de S.Paulo.
So even the experts are at a loss after the initial 'flyaway' phase of the new world championship. "We know that we know nothing," beamed Vettel after his victory, referring to the oddly see-sawing balance of power in 2012, blamed mainly on the Pirelli tyres. "It is almost impossible to predict in advance how the different tyre compounds are going to behave on race day," he is quoted by Der Spiegel. "You have an idea, but nothing more.(GMM)
Now Red Bull Racing emerges as new favorite
- Published on 23 Apr 2012 14:18
-
0
- By: Rob Veenstra
.
Trending news
-
What Verstappen really said about his Red Bull futureMax Verstappen has acknowledged his Red Bull contract extension through 2030 comes with a sobering reality: the next ...
28 Aug 2026 16:54 -
Racing Bulls join the macarena wing race with Imola testRacing Bulls are testing their own variant of the rotating rear wing design at Imola during a filmday on Tuesday, acc...
28 Aug 2026 15:51 -
Nico Rosberg issues stark warning to former team MercedesNico Rosberg has warned Mercedes that McLaren has become Formula 1's team to beat, delivering a stark assessment ...
28 Aug 2026 14:50 -
Why Alonso credited himself after Zandvoort chargeFernando Alonso delivered a blunt self-assessment after driving from 18th on the grid to ninth at the Dutch Grand Pri...
28 Aug 2026 13:48 -
Why Max Verstappen's 2030 Red Bull contract might not be finalMax Verstappen's new Red Bull contract through 2030 may not be the career-defining commitment it appears, accordi...
28 Aug 2026 12:47
Dutch Grand Prix
Local time
-
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Dutch Grand Prix
Local time
-
Friday
-
Saturday
-
Sunday
-
Friday
-
Saturday
-
Sunday
Test calendar
Circuit de Catalunya - Winter testing
-
Jan 26
I. Hadjar
- 1:18.159
-
-
-
Jan 27
M. Verstappen
- 1:19.578
-
-
-
Jan 28
A. Antonelli
- 1:17.362
-
-
-
Jan 29
G. Russell
- 1:16.445
-
-
-
Jan 30
L. Hamilton
- 1:16.348
-
-
Bahrain International Circuit - Winter testing
-
Feb 11
L. Norris
- 1:34.669
-
-
-
Feb 12
C. Leclerc
- 1:34.273
-
-
-
Feb 13
A. Antonelli
- 1:33.669
-
-
Bahrain International Circuit - Winter testing
-
Feb 18
G. Russell
- 1:33.459
-
-
Feb 19
A. Antonelli
- 1:32.803
-
-
Feb 20
C. Leclerc
- 1:31.992
-
-
World Championship standings 2026
Pos
Driver
Team
Points
Pos
Team
Points
Related news
Give your opinion!
Formula 1 Calendar - 2026
Date
Grand Prix
Circuit
-
Spain
-
Bahrain
-
Bahrain
Formula 1 Calendar - 2026
Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
-
Spain
Circuit de Catalunya
-
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
-
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
6 - Mar 8
Australia
Albert Park
13 - Mar 15
27 - Mar 29
Japan
Circuit Suzuka
10 - Apr 12
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
17 - Apr 19
Saudi Arabia
Jeddah Street Circuit
1 - May 3
United States of America
Miami International Autodrome
22 - May 24
Canada
Gilles Villeneuve
5 - Jun 7
Monaco
Monte Carlo
12 - Jun 14
Spain
Circuit de Catalunya
26 - Jun 28
Austria
Red Bull Ring
3 - Jul 5
United Kingdom
Silverstone
17 - Jul 19
Belgium
Spa-Francorchamps
24 - Jul 26
Hungary
Hungaroring
21 - Aug 23
Netherlands
Circuit Zandvoort
Driver profile
- Team Aston Martin
- Points 1,480
- Podiums 56
- Grand Prix 161
- Country DE
- Date of b. Jul 3 1987 (39)
- Place of b. Heppenheim, DE
- Weight 62 kg
- Length 1.75 m
- 281,401 comments on Aston Martin
57 members have this team as their favourite
Tweets about Sebastian Vettel
Team profile
- Team name Lotus F1
- Base Enstone, United Kingdom
- Daniel Ricciardo 3
- Kimi Räikkönen 7
- Romain Grosjean 8
- Kimi Räikkönen 9
- Romain Grosjean 10
- Pastor Maldonado 13
- Pastor Maldonado 13
- Kevin Magnussen 20
- Nico Hülkenberg 27
- Jolyon Palmer 30
- Esteban Ocon 31
- Carlos Sainz jr 55
- 65,124 comments on Lotus F1
- 17 members have this team as their favourite
- Tweets about Lotus F1
Replies (0)
Login to reply