The battle between Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso for sixth place was resolved by 11 thousandths. Although the two world champions respected each other as other drivers do not, Vettel says that Alonso was a bit harsh.
The last moments of the Japanese Grand Prix were a roller coaster of emotions. Max Verstappen crossed the finish line in first place, but only the duel between Sergio Pérez and Charles Leclerc gave the Dutch driver the second World Championship title. The five-second penalty for Leclerc for skipping the last chicane in his battle with the Mexican it was the key for there to be a champion in Suzuka.
In parallel, Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso signed an epic battle for sixth place. The German with very worn intermediate tires saw how the Asturian hunted him down on the last lap after overtaking George Russell, all in the midst of a comeback after going through the pits to put on some new intermediate tyres. The paths of the two world champions they were also at the last chicane.
Sebastian Vettel: “It was very, very close. He was a bit aggressive, I would say »
Fernando Alonso launched the car from far away at the entrance of the chicane, touching the German’s Aston Martin. Despite this first blow, the two drivers gave each other the necessary and sufficient space along the chicane, touching again at the start. It seemed then that Alonso could take the cat to the water and get the sixth position with the Alpine A522.
However, the duel between both pilots lasted until the same finish line, point at which Sebastian Vettel was leading by a narrow margin of 11 thousandths. A minimal difference, but enough to win this duel that can almost be classified as an era, since it has taken fans back to battles between Vettel and Alonso from the past.
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Vettel’s ‘little message’
Despite the fact that both pilots respected each other much more than is usual in battles of this type, Sebastian Vettel He has left a small message for Alonso: «Well, he was very, very close. It was a bit aggressive, I would say. Also, there was a bit of confusion because I lost the radio and I think the race management changed their mind about how long the race was going to be. So I didn’t know, but this time we got away with it.”
Regarding the incident that both already starred in the first lap, Vettel has pointed out: «We touched, I went to the left because he had a bad start and I had a better one. Then I had a lot of wheel slip and some aquaplaning and I lost the car. Then we touched and I already lost the car completely. Luckily, we had a great recovery until the end.”
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Great level
Vettel has put together two great performances in the last two races. The German pilot himself acknowledges that «we take the car to where it probably doesn’t belong. We even split the two Alpines in this race, who are much faster than us. We managed to hang in there, so I really enjoyed the race. I love everything about this place.”
The four-time world champion has added on speculation about a lower performance in the face of his retirement: «To be honest, I don’t care too much what is said about my results. I only care what I do. It will be a change, but I’m happy to have had a great race, especially here.”
Photos: aston martin f1