G he times nine thousandths of a second made the difference in qualifying for the Japanese GP. A time that you can hardly imagine. They correspond to the equivalent of 68 centimeters, the button on the straight on Vettel was missing. McLaren was much closer to Red Bull in Suzuka. Jenson Button last stood on the front row in Monaco. But it was not enough again. Sebastian Vettel won the race.
Front wing out of stock
The new front wing played a major role in this. Vettel tested the part on Friday, but destroyed it in his accident in the first training session. Red Bull did not have the new version in stock. Mark Webber was also on the road with the new grand piano, but they didn't want to simply take the part away from him like last year at Silverstone. After all, it was Vettel's mistake that it broke in the first place.
'The team did everything to bring the front wing in and it arrived just in time for qualifying. It wasn't easy, but we did it' said Vettel. “That's the best way to say thank you.” Without the front wing, things might have been tight for the Red Bull driver. According to Mark Webber, it was a few tenths of an improvement in lap time compared to the old version. With only nine thousandths of a second ahead of Button, you don't have to be a mathematician to understand the importance of the front wing.
The accident messed up Vettel's program for Saturday morning. 'We were there again in terms of the balance of the car, but we were too slow. We then sat together after the training session and luckily we got everything together,' says Vettel.
Vettel superstitious?
But he still doesn't want to think about winning the world championship. He doesn't even pronounce the word anymore. As if it brought bad luck beforehand. If fate is not bad for him, he only has to sleep one night before he becomes world champion for the second time. 'I don't see it that way,' replies Vettel. 'I'm happy when I wake up - like every morning. We're going to have a great race that I'm looking forward to. We're starting from pole position. In order to achieve what everyone is talking about, we have to agree Concentrate on a good race and give everything as always. '