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Vettel Did Not Know He Was World Champion at the Finish Line

Sebastian Vettel only found out that he is the new world champion of Formula One once he crossed the finish line of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The German driver burst into tears after the race and thanked his team for helping him clinch the F1 title, yet he had no idea on what positions his rivals finished behind him.

For the title, Vettel needed to win the race and hope Alonso finishes 5th or lower. The Ferrari-an ended the race however in 7th place, while Vettel’s other title rival, teammate Mark Webber, went on to settle for 8th place. After the race, Vettel admitted he had no clue on his title chances in the last 10 laps of the Abu Dhabi finale.

To be honest I did not know anything. I wondered. In the last 10 laps, my engineer Rocky [Guillaume Rocquelin] was giving me advice to help me get the car home. I wondered why he was so nervous,” he said, according to Autosport.

I thought we must be in a good position, then he said 'it's looking good', I didn't know what he meant. I just focused on myself, and they came on the radio and screamed that we have won the world championship. I am a bit speechless to be honest, I don't know what you're supposed to say in this moment. It is unbelievable.

Vettel also emphasized the importance of never giving up on the title, as he always believed in his chances from race 1. In the end, as he himself noted, he only got to lead the championship once in 2010, and that was after the last race of the season.

It was an incredibly tough season for all us, physically and especially mentally. I kept believing in myself and today was a special day. So I only led the championship once, when it mattered. "For some reason it does not feel like it is happening. It's strange, but it will sink in when I finally go to sleep - but I think we will have daylight before that happens.”
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