Greater Noida: Sebastian Vettel clinched his fourth successive Formula One championship for Red Bull at the Indian Grand Prix on Sunday. The following shows how the 26-year-old German did it:
AUSTRALIA
Points: Kimi Raikkonen 25, Fernando Alonso 18, Vettel 15
Vettel started on pole but struggled with tyre wear as Raikkonen won the season-opener for his 20th career victory.
QUOTE: "We could see from the first few laps that the tyres were falling apart. Sometimes we have to admit that other people are faster than us," said Vettel.
MALAYSIA
Vettel 40, Raikkonen 31, Mark Webber 26
Vettel again started on pole and won after defying team orders to back off, save the engine and let team mate Webber win. Alonso crashed out on the second lap after hitting the rear of Vettel's car and damaging his own front wing.
QUOTE: "I did a mistake, I'm not proud of it," said Vettel.
CHINA
Vettel 52, Raikkonen 49, Alonso 43
Alonso won, beating Raikkonen by 10.1 seconds. Lewis Hamilton started on pole for Mercedes. Vettel finished fourth.
QUOTE: "The tyres are the dominating factor at the moment," said Red Bull principal Christian Horner.
BAHRAIN
Vettel 77, Raikkonen 67, Lewis Hamilton 50
A commanding win for Vettel, who started on the front row and was so far ahead after 25 of the 57 laps that he could pit and still come out in the lead. Alonso was eighth after an unscheduled stop because his car's DRS system had stuck open.
QUOTE: "It was pretty dominant today. Certainly we had more pace than we expected," said the German.
SPAIN
Vettel 89, Raikkonen 85, Alonso 72
Alonso started fifth but put some heat on Vettel with his second win of the season. Vettel was fourth in a race full of pitstops.
QUOTE: "This has nothing to do with racing any more. This is a competition in tyre management," said Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz.
MONACO
Vettel 107, Raikkonen 86, Alonso 78
Nico Rosberg won for Mercedes from pole, a week after the team had conducted a 'secret' tyre test with Pirelli in Spain. Vettel made it a German one-two. Alonso finished seventh.
QUOTE: "Usually you expect two Silver Arrows in front of you and there were two buses today going for a cruise," said Vettel of the Mercedes duo who had started on the front row.
CANADA
Vettel 132, Alonso 96, Raikkonen 88
Vettel won a race clouded by the death of a marshal, the first fatality in F1 for more than a decade. The German finished 14.4 seconds clear of Alonso in second place for his first victory on North American soil.
QUOTE: "Finally we got our first win (in America), it's off the list now," said Vettel.
BRITAIN
Vettel 132, Alonso 111, Raikkonen 98
Rosberg avoided the spate of tyre blowouts that almost caused the race to be stopped and took his second win in three races. Vettel suffered a rare mechanical breakdown 11 laps from the end. Alonso qualified ninth and finished third.
QUOTE: "Lost the drive, lost the gearbox," Vettel shouted over the car radio.
GERMANY
Vettel 157, Alonso 123, Raikkonen 116
A first home win for Vettel, while Red Bull also made headlines when a wheel came off Webber's car in the pitlane and hit a television cameraman. Alonso finished fourth.
QUOTE: "I'm very happy the race ended at 60 laps and not 61 or 62," Vettel said after holding off Raikkonen by a second.
HUNGARY
Vettel 172, Raikkonen 134, Alonso 133
Hamilton took his first win for Mercedes. Vettel finished third, with Raikkonen second.
QUOTE: "I told Kimi I was not happy but he was laughing," said Vettel, who had complained Raikkonen had not given him enough room on one failed attempt to pass the Lotus.
BELGIUM
Vettel 197, Alonso 151, Hamilton 139
The German chalked up his fifth win in 11 races. Alonso was second while Raikkonen's record run of 27 successive races in the points came to an end. Greenpeace activists demonstrating against race sponsor Shell protested before and after the race.
QUOTE: "When they are dominating the weekend, when they do everything better than us and they win the race, they deserve the win," said Alonso.
ITALY
Vettel 222, Alonso 169, Hamilton 141
Ferrari fans booed Vettel, who led from pole position, on the podium. Alonso was second.
QUOTE: "You can hear the difference when you don't win here in a red suit," said the German.
SINGAPORE
Vettel 247, Alonso 187, Hamilton 151
More boos for Vettel's most dominant win of the season, with his Red Bull lapping two seconds quicker than rivals. Alonso was second, 32.6 seconds adrift, with a reprimand for giving Webber a 'taxi' ride back to the pits on his Ferrari after the race.
QUOTE: "As long as they keep on booing, then we are doing a good job," said Vettel.
KOREA
Vettel 272, Alonso 195, Raikkonen 167
Fourth win in a row for the German, on pole again, for a hat-trick of Korean victories. Alonso finished sixth.
QUOTE: "He has won already," commented Hamilton. "Personally, I feel for the fans because I remember the period of time when Michael Schumacher was winning."
JAPAN
Vettel 297, Alonso 207, Raikkonen 177
Fifth successive win and ninth of the season. Webber started on pole with Vettel alongside but the Red Bull's were passed by Lotus's Romain Grosjean at the start. Vettel's two stop strategy, to Webber's three, then won through.
QUOTE: "A horrible start but then a fantastic comeback" - Vettel on his race.
INDIA
Vettel 322, Alonso 207, Raikkonen 183
Sixth successive win and 10th of the season. Started on a pole again for a hat-trick of Indian victories. Alonso finished 11th.
QUOTE: "I don't know what to say but it is the best day of my life so far," Vettel on his achievement.
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