The incredibly boyish looking Vettel with his slight build cut a childlike figure amidst the high octane Formula 1 paddock, but the mop-haired German teenager has already proved to be a formidable talent with a maturity beyond his years. The surprise opportunity to make his Grand Prix debut at the 2007 United States Grand Prix in place of the indisposed Robert Kubica led to Sebastian becoming the sport’s youngest-ever points scorer at 19 years and 345 days, when he took eighth place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Later in the year he was to score a more of a stir behind the wheel of the Toro Rosso when he claimed an impressive fourth place in China, the team’s best ever placing.
Being the son of an enthusiastic hill climb and karting competitor, saw Sebastian behind the wheel of karts as a toddler and he made his competition debut aged just seven. In 1997 he took his first German title and after moving up to the European series, he was crowned champion in both the Junior and Senior classes before taking the big step into cars for the 2003 season.
His talent was immediately in evidence in the Formula BMW series as he ended his debut year in second place overall, taking the top rookie honours in the process. The following year the German youngster was totally dominant in winning 18 of the 20 races and this naturally ensured his promotion to the F3 Euro Series in for 2005. Although Lewis Hamilton was the runaway champion, Vettel once again made a great impression in his rookie year, taking fifth overall and won the golden opportunity to test an F1 Williams-BMW as a reward for his Formula BMW success.
In 2006 Vettel found himself in a close fought battle for the title with the equally talented Paul di Resta, but despite four victories, the German lost out of in the title chase at the final round out of the championship in Hockenheim. By this time however Sebastian had already made his mark at Grand Prix level following the abrupt departure of Jacques Villeneuve from the BMW Sauber squad half way through the 2006 season. His first appearances as the third driver in Friday test sessions in Turkey and Italy saw him top the timing sheets, and immediately cement his place as a key member of the BMW Formula 1 squad for the 2007 season.
Having already made a great impression on his aforementioned Grand Prix debut for BMW Sauber, it was impossible to keep the young Vettel’s career on hold, and he was soon found a place in Toro Rosso team under fatherly influence of Gerhard Berger.
Given the chance to show his worth, the youngster grabbed it with both hands. An astonishing drive in the rain at Mount Fuji saw Sebastian in potential podium position – until he blotted his copybook big style by ramming into Mark Webber’s Red Bull. Distraught at his gaffe the youngster was in tears post race, but he was soon to show his mettle a week later in China when he made amends by recording Toro Rosso’s highest ever finish.
Certainly all the signs so far are that Vettel looks to have true championship potential, but inevitably he will struggle to make more than an occasional impact with his present team. The fact that his name is already being strongly linked with Ferrari in the future indicates just how strongly fancied the youngster has become.
