The Star Online: Sports
The Star Online: Sports |
- Vettel looks to make 100th race an historic one
- Fab Four rivalries will be good for tennis
- Garcia sets sight on bagging Johor Open title
| Vettel looks to make 100th race an historic one Posted: 14 Nov 2012 07:27 PM PST AUSTIN, Texas - Sebastian Vettel can make his 100th Formula One race the United States Grand Prix an historic one here on Sunday by being crowned the youngest ever triple world champion. The 25-year-old German, and his Red Bull team, could make it a night for double celebrations if they take both the drivers' and teams' titles in a country where he made his debut as a baby-faced 19-year-old stand-in at Indianapolis in 2007. That last United States Grand Prix, five years ago, was won by Briton Lewis Hamilton of McLaren and, this time around, he will once again be a major contender for victory in his penultimate race for the team before he leaves for Mercedes. But both championship leader Vettel and Hamilton know they face a challenge this weekend from two-time champion Spaniard Fernando Alonso of Ferrari who is 10 points behind the German in the title race and still convinced he can secure his own third title. Finn Kimi Raikkonen of Lotus, victorious in Abu Dhabi, will also be a threat. Vettel, who replaced Pole Robert Kubica at BMW Sauber in 2007, managed to qualify seventh and finish eighth, his single point for that feat making him F1's youngest points-scorer - a record that he still holds. As he looked ahead to this weekend's showdown at the virtually unknown Circuit of the Americas, a purpose-built track 15 miles from Austin city centre, he admitted he could hardly believe it. "It's all gone so quickly," he said. "One hundred is a big number - 100 grands prix sounds a lot: 100 starts, 100 times surviving the first corner. If I reflect on it, it doesn't feel so long ago that I broke into Formula One... "That shows me that time flies when you do something that you really like and enjoy, so let's focus on the second 100!" Typically, Vettel has not dwelt on the various permutations that could land him the title this weekend. He knows that with a 10-point lead he can secure the title with a victory this weekend and that is his clear goal. He goes into the race with two races - worth a maximum of 50 points for two wins available - remaining. He has 255 points to Alonso 245. In spite of his extraordinary success in the last three seasons, there are many who still find it difficult to pour praise on Vettel and this week that list grew longer with the addition of 1997 drivers' champion Canadian Jacques Villeneuve. The former Williams driver believes Vettel still has to mature and often "reacts like a child" if things are not going his way - sufficient reason, for him, to be pledging his support to Alonso as the season reaches its climax. Villeneuve, however, said he felt that Vettel is almost invincible if he can lead a race from the front. "I have no doubts - Fernando Alonso is the best, that's why I root for him," Villeneuve told Autosprint magazine. "Seb is super quick, but there is a difference with Fernando that emerges in case of an unfavourable situation. Alonso remains calm, cool, and rational, while Vettel most times gets upset, angry, screams and flicks the middle finger. He reacts like a child. "These behaviours indicate two different states of maturity but, let's be clear, Sebastian is an ace too; however, he struggles more in critical situations. "He looks almost unbeatable when he leads, but if he needs to catch up he becomes vulnerable." He added that he believed Vettel's stunning drive from the pit lane to a podium finish in third place in Abu Dhabi supported his view. "For me, it confirmed what I think about Vettel... These are facts: while recovering from the back, he made contact with Senna who was ahead of him and damaged his front wing. "Then he lost control of his car and crashed under the Safety Car - a very serious error that had light consequences. As for the rest, he was super quick, but he was lucky and I'm not changing my mind: Alonso deserves the 2012 title more." Vettel said he felt both he and Alonso were equally worthy of the title. "If you look at the races we've done so far I think Fernando's and my DNFs or calamities are equal," he told the official Formula 1 website. "I still believe that the driver who deserves it most will be champion. No doubt we are in a very good position now and I hope we do well until the very end to make sure that we deserve the glory... "Of course, the last races we had were very good for us, to put it mildly. They have helped us a lot." - AFP |
| Fab Four rivalries will be good for tennis Posted: 14 Nov 2012 03:35 PM PST PARIS: Novak Djokovic's commanding victory over Roger Federer in the final of the ATP Tour Finals in London on Monday brought the curtain down on a spectacular year for men's tennis which has rarely been in more robust health. It was a fittingly bookend triumph for the popular Serb, who got things underway in January by defeating Rafael Nadal in a pulsating Australian Open final that took almost six hours to complete – the longest title match in Grand Slam history. Djokovic subsequently may not have reproduced the blistering form that brought him three Grand Slam titles in 2011, but runs into the finals of the French and US Opens and the semi-finals at Wimbledon deservedly saw him finish the year on top. It was an achievement that if anything, he said, meant more to him than what he produced in the previous year given the quality of the opposition he had to face from Nadal, Federer and Andy Murray. For the first time since 2003, before Federer took command of the sport, the four Grand Slam titles were shared out. Djokovic beat Nadal in five sets in Australia, Nadal beat Djokovic in four sets in Paris, Federer beat Murray in four at Wimbledon and Murray edged Djokovic in five in New York. Murray had the added satisfaction of winning Olympic gold over Federer in London and Djokovic had the last word against Federer also in London. Former British No. 1 Tim Henman said that the way Monday's match had finished had summed the year up perfectly. "It was a very fitting match to finish what has been an unbelievable year and it was a very fitting last shot, Djokovic under pressure out wide, able to find the passing shot and get the victory," he wrote in his BBC column. "I think the game's stronger than it's ever been, with Djokovic maintaining his place at the top of the game after last year, when he just dominated everything and was the clear number one. "The margins between Djokovic, Federer, Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal are so small, it comes down to just a few points when they play each other. "I think that's the beauty of their rivalry, that they're all capable of beating each other, which was emphasised by each of them winning one of the four Slams in 2012." — AFP |
| Garcia sets sight on bagging Johor Open title Posted: 14 Nov 2012 03:35 PM PST PETALING JAYA: Fully recovered from a recent eye surgery to correct astigmatism, Spanish superstar Sergio Garcia is hoping to finish off the tailend of this season as well as he can now see. The US$2mil Iskandar Johor Open, from Dec 13-16 at Horizon Hills Golf and Country Club, is the last of three tournaments Garcia will be competing in and he's hoping to shine in his first appearance here. Garcia, the world No. 22 who has not played since helping Europe to victory over the United States in the Ryder Cup in Medinah in September, will feature in the DP World Tour Championsip in Dubai and the Thailand Golf Championship in Bangkok before heading for the Asian Tour season finale in Johor Baru. "The surgery went well. I went for a check-up on Monday and was told everything is perfect. My vision is 100% now, so the doctors are very excited about it. "I can see the difference and I have been practising a bit," said Garcia in a teleconference call arranged by the organisers yesterday. It also helped that he has improved on his putting and consistency this year. "I've always had good putting rounds and stretches where I've putted well but consistency wasn't great so that's nice to have now. " I think that the great thing about the game is that you can always improve, pretty much on every aspect of your game. Mentally you can improve; physically you can get a bit better. You can always find something to tune a little bit more," said Garcia, who is excited to come to Malaysia where he has heard many good things. "This will be my first time playing in Malaysia, so I am very excited about it. I know golfers who have played in the tournament before, like Retief Goosen, so I have been told great things about it. "I am excited to see the golf course and enjoy my week there. It should be a great way to end the year for me. "The goals are simple, I am going to go there and hopefully I am feeling good that week and I can fight for a win. "A victory will be amazing but if I can play nicely and have a good chance, it will be a good way to end the year," added the 32-year-old Spaniard. "Coming to Asia, I try to do it every year if I can. I've always said that I am a global player. This year with the eye surgery I couldn't go to China or Australia but I enjoy it. "That's one of the reasons I am in Dubai next week, I'll go to Thailand to play there then I will go to Malaysia to play in Johor. "I've always enjoyed that part of the globe and I am looking forward to it." Asked about the significance of his role in the Ryder Cup team, Garcia said it was special for a couple of reasons. "One of them, on the Saturday afternoon before we won the last two matches, we were dead. As simple as that, we were done. "But wow, everything changed, the energy in the team room, how everything lifted up. How we were able to come back on Sunday against such a strong team and those crowds that were very rowdy and great supporters of their team. "To win away from home, away from Europe made it amazing. To do it for our captain and also for Seve (Ballesteros). All together made it so special," said Garcia, who launched his Junior Golf Academy in Catalunya on Tuesday. |
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