New Delhi: It would take a brave if not foolhardy soul, to bet against Sebastian Vettel clinching his 11th win of the season, in the inaugural Indian Grand Prix, come Sunday.
Having secured his 13th pole position of the season on Saturday, Vettel will be in no mood to relent as the F1 world, along with motorsport enthusiasts in the country, gear up for a truly historic occasion.
Earlier on Friday, setting aside the stray dog incident, and one in which a photographer doubled up as a marshal, the two practice sessions of the Indian GP, saw Brazil’s Felipe Massa deny Red Bull and Vettel the bragging rights by finishing on top at the end of the day.
‘Drama on the track’ would be the best way to define the course of events that followed, even though some of the action would have left the organisers red faced.
But as far as results on the track are concerned, it would be hard to visualize any scene other than, Vettel holding aloft the prized trophy at the conclusion of the race.
With 10 victories out of the 15 races held thus far this season, the man from Heppenheim has done what he failed to do last year, convert pole positions into race wins.
Even though, Red Bull have proved to be heads and shoulders ahead of the rest of the pack, Vettel deserves more than the credit that’s due, considering that teammate Mark Webber is yet to win his first race of the year.
The story seemed to be totally different last year, when the animosity between Webber and Vettel came to full tilt during the Turkish GP, as the two collided with each other, to the horror of the Red Bull establishment.
Even though Vettel has been in cruise control throughout the 2011 season, there has been the odd occasion when he has provided the opposition drivers an opportunity to cash in when push came to shove.
A slip up by the 24 year old German on the very last lap of the Canadian Grand Prix allowed McLaren’s Jenson Button to snatch a memorable victory in wet conditions.
But the errors have been few and far between as the Red Bull-Sebastian Vettel combination continues to march on, and there is very little to suggest that things should be any different at the Buddh International Circuit on race day.