Sebastian Vettel & Fernando Alonso - Head To Head Vettel and Alonso will go head to head this weekend at Interlagos with only just 13 points separating the two drivers. Will Vettel and Red Bull emerge victorious? or will Alonso and Ferrari steel the limelight? The climax of the Formula 1 season 2012 in Brazil this weekend is a little bit like a Champions League final with the teams drawing 1-1 with a minute to go. Anything can happen! On paper, Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel is in a very strong position, in a faster car 13 points ahead of Ferrari's Fernando Alonso and with only 25 points available for the winner. One driver has everything to lose and the other has everything to gain. The only valid attitude Alonso can have is to take risks and be aggressive from the first moment to the last. The only valid attitude Vettel can have is to be conservative because all he can do is lose it. How do you deal with this? It's like a poker match. Both players have different cards and they have to play them the best they can. And the person with the best hand will not necessarily win. The first thing Vettel needs to do is to finish the race and be in the points. This is what he should have in his head. He is leading; he has the fastest car on the grid. Alonso has effectively already lost - he is already second, he can't go worse. So he has nothing to lose. Brazil is a crazy race in a place where crazy things often happen. It often rains during the race in Interlagos. There can be a safety car. External factors like that sometimes play with you and sometimes play against you. It is a high-pressure situation for both drivers and their teams. Both of them are usually good under pressure, but it can do funny things to people. The situation is an almost exact reverse of the 2010 title climax, when Vettel went into the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi 15 points behind Alonso but ended up as champion. In this sort of situation, small mistakes can happen. In the pit stops, in strategy, in tyre selection, you can lose the championship. Everyone will look to this race with high expectations, but it would be wrong to forget what has happened in the past this year. |
