Before you flame me for the headline, a few points:
- I did not say anything about Lewis Hamilton.
- I did not question Michael Schumacher.
- I did not mention Bahrain.
OK, with those aside, here’s my evidence to support the headline, from the BBC:
Sebastian Vettel says Red Bull have lost confidence after failing to replicate last season’s dominance so far in 2012.
[snip]
“It is tight and we’re not as confident as we used to be,” said Vettel.
“So small things can make a difference in qualifying and have a big impact on the race.”
Seriously? A “bad” start — which only means they are leading the Formula 1 title races but aren’t dominating in Schumacher-at-Ferrari style — has them “not as confident” as they used to be? That’s all it took to shake the team?
Christian Horner needs to — to steal a recent phrase from California Gov. Jerry Brown — “man up” and tell his team that they are two-time champs, with a two-time champ nad the best designer in the business and that they are still the team to beat.
You don’t prove anything against no competition, after all. And maybe that’s why the team’s confidence was so thin. Last season, they just needed to make sure Vettel got pole and all worked out from there.
But, really, faced with a little tough times, there were signs of their bending? That’s weak sauce people.
I’m tempted to do the “sports prognosticator” thing and tell you all to watch how the team handles any upcoming adversity, but that seems too obvious.
Instead, I’m going to continue to shake my head at Vettel’s quote. Maybe he was sending someone at the team a message?
