Reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton has flagged the coming of a new rival for the 2009 season.

On a visit to the German capital Berlin, the 23-year-old Briton admitted to the country's major Sunday newspaper Bild am Sonntag that he counts Sebastian Vettel as very much a dark horse for the forthcoming championship campaign.

Red Bull's new Renault-powered RB5 has been a standout of the pre-season tests, and last week at Jerez its 21-year-old driver set the fastest lap of the five-day session during a low-fuel run.

"Sebastian is on the way to being a star," the McLaren driver said.

"He proved it last year by winning in Monza that he is a winning driver. This year he can mix it at the front and I am expecting him to do so," he added.

Vettel set the Jerez pace last week by just under eight-tenths of a second.
Source: F1Live

Sebastian Vettel doesn't seem to get speed and adrenaline enough in his free time. This week, he's been to Hangar 7, in Salzburg, to get some aerodynamic tips from two big masters of the air. Seb has taken the place of Airrace pilot Matthias Dolderer and took a ride with Felix Baumgartner in a Mini-Helikopter. Sebastian had a lot of fun with both.

Click here to check the images
Source: RBR / Thanks: Michaela

[...] However there is now a pressing question that must be asked: in the modern-day world of F1, is it possible for someone to drag a team up by its coat-tails and dominate the sport, as did the legendary German driver (Michael Schumacher) with Ferrari?

"Look at Sebastian Vettel," Surtees affirms. "Look how he lifted the performance of his team (Toro Rosso) last year. I think a bit of that momentum will stay at Red Bull: it will infuse the people he's working with, give them a buzz. That could be a factor, but it is very early in his career. (To dominate like Schumacher) I think that a driver has to come through the karting ranks and the rest of it, and develop that total relationship with a piece of machinery which is necessary to take it to its limit. In a way you had that with Hamilton coming in."

As for Hamilton: are there more titles to come, and what will decide whether he does so or not?

"Maybe he can win more: the most important factor is that he keeps a competitive car and a level head. All the pressure's on him with the media and everything else. There's a number of youngsters coming through who, given the right car, can give him a real problem, like Vettel.
Source: Yahoo!

++ John Surtees was three times 500 cc motorcycle champion and also the Formula One champion in 1964. [by Wiki]

Job-description aside, Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso have another thing in common: speculation linking them with a future move to Ferrari.

On a visit this week to the Italian university Politecnico di Milano, Vettel - despite only recently inking a two year deal with Red Bull Racing - was asked about the rumours predicting his next move.

"To Ferrari? I don't know," he answered. "I hope so, one day, because it would be a dream."

However, in the presence of Red Bull technical chief Geoff Willis, Vettel hastily added that he is currently "happy where I am."
Source: F1live.com

Red's Bull Sebastian Vettel believes it is likely we will see some suprise performances at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix at the end of the month. 2009 marks the German's first year with Red Bull Racing, having moved from sister team Toro Rosso at the end of last year.

Most pre-season testing has been hindered this year due to inclement weather conditions in both Europe and the Middle East, although in dry conditions Vettel was the fastest driver at Jerez on Sunday by over a second. He is confident as the new season draws closer: "I think everybody pretty well knows what he's got in his pocket. We have lost track time because of the weather but you can then work with simulations to cushion the deficit," he explained to the official F1 website.

He continued "We will probably see suprises in Melbourne, like expecting more from updates that looked good in simulation but don't delivery on the track."

When questioned on whether his current contract contains a get-out clause, Vettel's response was ironically secretive: "I think you will have to ask that question to my manager, but unfortunately I don't have one. So I'll have to answer that one myself; as my manager, I would say that I don't talk about contracts! Anything can happen. But I would be lying if I said my target is not to win. I am here for winning!"
Source: GPUpdate

The British-based F1 teams, including Red Bull Racing, must be thinking it’s time to return to 'the good old days' and carry out winter testing at Silverstone. The original plan had been for the team and Sebastian Vettel to carry out development testing of RB5 in the morning, before tackling a race simulation in the afternoon.
The wet track saw the morning programme replaced with a run through of pit lane procedures and pit stops. This proved useful as this was the first time with the new car.
Despite stopping on track with a mechanical problem, Vettel later successfully completed the race distance. Vettel was fifth fastest, putting in 102 laps in total.
Tomorrow, Mark Webber takes over behind the wheel, for the remaining three days of this five day session.