Vettel looks to use home advantage in Webber battle

HOCKENHEIM - Sebastian Vettel heads into this weekend’s German Grand Prix at Hockenheim looking to get back on the front foot in his battle to claim the Formula One drivers’ title.

The 23-year-old’s championship hopes took a knock at the British GP on July 11 when he finished seventh after a first-lap puncture to now lie in fourth place overall, 24 points behind leader Lewis Hamilton of McLaren.

Red Bull teammate Mark Webber took the chequered flag at Silverstone to move seven points clear of Vettel and caused an internal furore when he announced on the team radio that the win was “not bad for a number two driver.”

Webber’s comments came after a new front wing was taken off his car and given to Vettel.

“We have to concentrate now on winning points in the remaining races because then anything is possible,” said Vettel.

“What’s important is that we don’t allow ourselves to be distracted.”

Webber claimed victory at last year’s German GP at the Nuerburgring but Vettel can count on a huge home support this weekend, as evidenced by the 100,000 fans who made their way to a PR event in his home town of Heppenheim last Sunday.

“Formula One is a fast-moving business. You can be the hero one day, a fool the next and a super hero the day after that,” said Vettel.

Webber and Vettel also crashed when battling for the lead in the Turkish GP at the end of May but Red Bull motorsport director Helmut Marko remained confident that the pair can put their differences to one side and race for the good of the team.

“Once the race starts it seems that something changes in the brains of the drivers. However, we are still positively hopeful that things will go well in the future,” Marko told Servus TV.

Team owner Dietrich Mateschitz has insisted both drivers should be treated equally, saying the pits must not interfere because then problems begin in earnest.

“Our two drivers know that they have to beat each other but they still need each other to take away as many points as possible from the competition,” he told Austria’s Kleine Zeitung newspaper.