Vettel to get betterposted in F117 | 11 | 2010

RED BULL'S motorsport advisor Helmut Marko, the man who guided Sebastian Vettel through his career to the ultimate crowning of being world champion, believes the young German will now be a more relaxed, and better driver.

"I think he will be more mature, more relaxed after this," Mark, the man who stood awkwardly with Vettel on the podium after Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, said. "So we are really looking forward to the next season."

And while Markko heaped praise on Vettel for the way he kept his head through the turbulent season, also gave fresh insight into the safety car nightmare in Hungary which resulted in the new world champ serving a drive-thru penalty after he dropped back behind the restart.

While Vettel was immediately criticised in the aftermath of the race at the Hungagroring for not paying attention, it now transpires he was actually trying to help his Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber by him as much of a headstart as possible so the Australian's tyre strategy would pay off.

"I believe he had some tough races, like Turkey, and then there was Monte Carlo and Barcelona, where we found out his chassis had a problem," Marko continued. "Then he had this problem in Budapest where he tried to help the team but got the drive-through.
"But the hardest was Korea – leading and dominating the race under really difficult situations, and then having this engine failure 10 laps from the end." And Vettel received further praise from his team boss Christian Horner.
"He has never lost his focus," the Englishman said. "He has kept his cool, he has never given up belief and he has never given up. He is a very, very determined young man.
"There have been low points for him this season. Korea a month ago; the way he handed that was unbelievable. He shrugged himself down, and said 'no, we will be back, we will keep pushing and we will keep fighting', and he has never lost belief in himself or the team. We are very, very proud of him.
"He has just grown and grown. He has got stronger with each season and he is only 23 years of age. It is remarkable progress and great maturity." And Horner acknowledged Vettel's performance was undoubtedly helped by the constant pressure from Webber
"There's no doubt it is a monkey off Seb's back at a very young age," Horner continued. "He has achieved some awesome statistics in his short career. But let's not forget he has been pushed very, very hard by a huge performance from Mark Webber this year.
"I am hugely proud of what Mark has achieved. He has pushed relentlessly, he has taken the championship down to the last race.
"He could well have won this championship as both had their opportunities, so let's take nothing away from him, or from his performance this season. He has brought the best out of Sebastian and he has pushed him tremendously hard."

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Jim McGill



(Photo: Getty Images)