Vettel Risks Engine Penalty for the Remainder of 2009

Sebastian Vettel will not protect his engines anymore in the final 4 rounds of the 2009 season. As it emerged during the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, the German driver cut his practice mileage down to a minimum in order to save his power plants for the much more important qualifying session and race that weekend.

Vettel is currently running out of engines for the remaining races of 2009 – each driver in entitled to 8 units per season, or else will be handed a 10-place grid penalty for each extra engine used – which led Red Bull's owner Dietrich Mateschitz launch an unprecedented attack at his team's engine supplier Renault.

The Austrian billionaire pointed to Renault when talking about Red Bull's failure to keep the title fight alive this season, as the power plants provided by the French manufacturer have been all but performing in the second half of 2009.

However, as both Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull are far away from the F1 title following Brawn's perfect weekend at Monza, the energy drink company's racing advisor Helmut Marko insisted there would be no logic in taking this defensive approach any longer.

“It is no longer going to help us if we drive defensively,” Marko was quoted as saying to Germany's Auto Motor und Sport, which means Vettel will push like crazy from Practice One to the chequered flag in each of the following 4 Grands Prix. Although he is more than 20 points behind Jenson Button in the drivers' standings, Vettel vowed to push for the title until there will be no more mathematical chances to clinching it.

“I will fight to the last breath and minute,” said Vettel in an interview with Formula One's official site.