Vettel’s Title Hopes Suffer Major Hit in Japan

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief

Sebastian Vettel saw his chances at a fifth Formula One championship dealt its biggest blow yet with an early retirement from Sunday’s Japanese Grand Prix.

It was the third consecutive weekend that Scuderia Ferrari have dealt with problems at the start of the race in some form or another. The 30-year-old German was leading the championship up to the Italian Grand Prix, but with just four rounds left in 2017 he now sits second behind Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton – who stretched his margin out to 59 points after capturing the win at Suzuka.

On the grid prior to the race, the Italian squad had to change out a spark plug on Vettel’s SF70H, but it didn’t keep the problem at bay as shortly after the start he reported a lack of power before his second retirement in the last three races.

It is entirely possible that the championship could be wrapped up in the next round at the United States Grand Prix if Hamilton were to score a win with Vettel finishing sixth or worse. Since Circuit of the Americas debuted in 2012, Hamilton has captured four of five possible victories, with Vettel the lone exception in 2013.

About Joey Barnes 601 Articles
Joey Barnes is the Founder of Motorsports Tribune, an outlet that began with the goal of helping aspiring journalists break into and grow the industry. A regular on the racing scene since 2013, the journey for Joey started by covering a Grand-Am event at Circuit of The Americas in his home state of Texas. He has since primarily focused on the IndyCar Series, with appearances in the garages of NASCAR, paddocks of Formula 1, IMSA and World Endurance Championship, while also occasionally engulfing clouds of dust at the Chili Bowl Midget Nationals and select Supercross rounds. With previous stops at Autoweek, IndyCar.com, Motorsport.com and RACER, among others, Joey evolved from the singular task as a freelance writer to advanced roles behind the copy desk and alongside some of the best editorial teams in the business. Recognized as a multi-time award winner by the National Motorsports Press Association, Joey currently resides in Dallas-Fort Worth with his trusty four-legged canine companion, Rocket.