Formula 1 World Drivers' Championship (Sebastian Vettel)

Lore & Background

Vettel's rivalry with Fernando Alonso was particularly intense in 2012, when Vettel won the title by 3 points (281 to Alonso's 278), fighting off Ferrari's challenge until the final race.

In Their Own Story

The air at Suzuka vibrated with the high-pitched scream of the RB9's V8 engine, a sound that seemed to rattle the very tarmac beneath the grandstands. As the checkered flag snapped in the wind, Sebastian Vettel didn't just wave; he vaulted onto the cockpit rim, arms spread wide, drinking in the deafening roar of the Japanese crowd. When his helmet came off, eyes wide with a volatile mix of disbelief and triumph, the years of grueling testing, sleepless nights at Milton Keynes, and the suffocating weight of defending a title evaporated into pure adrenaline. In that instant, he ceased to be just a driver; he became the architect of an era where nothing could touch him.

Reader's Guide

Vettel's four titles with Red Bull came during the team's Renault engine era (2007–2018). He led the team to its first Constructors' Championship in 2010 and repeated the feat in 2011, 2012, and 2013.

Did You Know?

• Vettel became the youngest F1 World Champion in 2010, holding the record until Max Verstappen broke it in 2021.
• Vettel's 2010 title made Red Bull the first team with an Austrian energy drink brand to win the championship, though the team itself holds a British racing license.