30 Interesting Facts About Former Formula One World Champion - Sebastian Vettel

Sebastian Vettel is a German racing driver currently driving in Formula One for Scuderia Ferrari. He is considered as one among the most successful F1 drivers of all time. Here are 30 facts to know about him:

1. Vettel won the Formula One World Championship four times from 2010 to 2013 successively. He is one of the four successful driver to have won the F1championship four or more times.
2. He is third among four children to Norbert and Heike Vettel. He was born on July 03, 1987 at Heppenheim, Germany.
3. Vettel did his schooling at Starkenburg Gymnasium High School in Heppenheimand passed out with average grade. As a child he was big fan of three Michael’s – Michael Schumacher, Michael Jordan and Michael Jackson.
4. Vettel started karting at the age of three in a small parking lot at his house. He started karting for the fun of it.By the age of eight he started racing in karts series and won his first race for a crown and not a cup to his disappointment.
5. His early promise earned him a place in the Red Bull Junior Team in 1998. By 2003 he was promoted to open-wheel cars and won the Formula BMW Championship in 2004.
6. In 2005 he took part in Formula 3 Euro Series and finished fifth with 63 points. He was awarded the year’s top rookie honors.
7. Vettel finished the year 2006 as championship runner-up in the Formula 3 Euro Series and was promoted as test driver for ‘BMW Sauber Formula One’ team.
8. Vettel almost lost his finger at the 2006 Spa-Francorchamps when he spun and hit the tyre wall backwards. Wreckage from the crash hit his finger cutting through the bone. He was out of race for some weeks ending his title hopes in Formula 3 Euro Series.
9. In 2006 aged 19 years and 53 days Vettel participated as test driver for BMW Sauberduring Grand Prix weekend free practice before the race. He is the youngest formula driver to do so. He also collected his first fine for exceeding the speed limit in the pit lane.
10. On June 15, 2007 Vettel made his debut asformula one driver for BMW Sauber in the United States Grand Prix in place of injured Robert Kubica. He finished eighth to score a point in the world championship to become the youngest driver to so.
    
11. On July 31, 2007 Vettel was transferred to team STR the ‘Toro Rosso’ from Hungarian Grand Prix onwards. He ended the season with creditable fourth place finish in the Chinese Grand Prix.
12. Vettel started the 2008 season with disappointment of retiring in 6 of the 13 races before winning the Italian Grand Prix. He became the youngest driver at 21 years and 74 days to win a Formula One Grand Prix beating the record of Fernando Alonso and was named ‘Rookie of the years,’ by the motor racing magazine ‘Autosport.’
13. After his win at ‘Italian Grand Prix,’ he called ‘Baby Schumi.’ He was compared because of his driving style and concentration.
14. In 2009 he moved to ‘Red Bull-Renault’ and won the Driver’s Runner-up Championship behind Jenson Button. He was awarded the ‘DHL Fastest Lap Award.’
15. Vettel won his first ‘Formula One Driver’s Championship’ in 2010, despite not being in contention at earlier stages. He is the youngest world champion.
16. He along with his team mate Mark Webber helped his team ‘Red Bull-Renault’ to its first Formula One Constructor’s Championship in 2010. They pooled 498 points with twenty podium finish combined.
17. Vettel title defense in 2011 was smooth with six wins out of first nine races and finishing second in the remaining. It is another first in the history of Formula One Race.
18. He won his second ‘Formula One Driver’s Championship’ in 2011 with 11 race wins. He was on the podium in 17 of the 19 races with a record total of 392 points.
19. In the 2012 Formula One season, Vettel was involved in a collision with NarainKarthikeyan of HRT-Cosworthduring Malaysian Grand Prix, resulting in tyrepuncture. He finished the race twelfth to be out of points for the first time in 24 races, since 2010 Belgian Grand Prix.
20. He won his third consecutive ‘Formula One Driver Championship’ in 2012 to become the youngest at 25 years. He won by three points from Fernando Alonso. It was his third championship win.
    
21. Vettel dominated the 2013 Formula One Season tothat extend, that he won the Championship at Indian Grand Prix with three races still to go. He won by margin of 155 points with 13 wins.
22. 2014 was a disastrous year for Vettel without a win and finished the season fifth in the championship. He is the first defending champion in 18 years to go without a single victory.
23. He was awarded the ‘Laureus World Sports Award’ as sportsman of the year in 2014 at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
24. Vettel left ‘Red Bull-Renault’ and joined the ‘Ferrari’ for the 2015 Formula One season. He said that it was a honor to get a chance to drive a Ferrari just like his idol, Michael Schumacher.
25. At the 2015 Belgium Grand Prix, he was well set, when his right rear tyre burst at high speed during his penultimate lap. He blamed the tyre manufacturer ‘Pirelli’ and called it unacceptable and unsafetyres.
26. Vettel called his third place finish in the 2015 Formula One Driver’s championship as a miracle season for the Ferrari considering the teams position year gone by.
27. In 2017 he won two races at Australian and Bahrain Grand Prix to take his tally of wins to 44. He stands fourth in all-time list of Grand Prix winners. Michael Schumacher heads the list with 91 wins.
28. Vettel has won seven Nation’s Cup for Germany and one Champion of Champions in 2015 beating Kristensen in the final.
29. His passion for helmet design can be traced back to karting days. He worked with designer ‘Jens Munser.’ He retires his helmet design after each win till FIA enforced a ban on significant helmet change in a season.
30. Vettel has a tradition of naming his car at the start of every season. His 2017 car Ferrari SF70H has been named ‘Gina.’
31. Sebastian Vettel Net Worth: $55 Million