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BARCELONA, Spain - Defending triple Formula 1 champion Sebastian Vettel cut a relaxed figure on Thursday as he forecast a close-fought outcome in this weekend's 2013 Spanish GP (May 10-12).
The 25-year-old Red Bull driver dismissed suggestions that the many packages of upgrades for cars brought to Spain by the teams would make any difference - and reckoned the usual suspects would be up at the front.
'IN THE SAME BOAT'
Vettel said: "I don't think it will be a big surprise. Ideally, everybody makes a step forward and then we're all in the same boat."
Despite his reeling off two wins, a third and a fourth in the opening four races, he said there was still plenty of room for improvement by him and his dominant Red Bull team.
"You're not just looking at the raw result, but also how you achieved the result - we have some room for improvement. That's what we are targeting but I wouldn't say we are unhappy with what we have so far."
Pirelli has brought a new hard compound to the Spanish GP which has been designed to work in lower temperature ranges and give teams more strategy options but despite the changes, Vettel thinks managing tyre degradation of the tyres will still be the key to victory on Sunday.
"We know a little about what to expect given the information we received from Pirelli, but I don't expect a miracle," he said. "I think we will still have to work a lot around the tyre and make the tyre last. Whether it helps us a lot and whether this is the compound that we carry on using - talking about the hard tyre - we will know a little bit more after Sunday."
Vettel, Drivers' champion in 2010, 2011 and 2012, leads nearest rival Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus) by 10 points and third-placed Briton Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) by 27 points in the championship after four races.
Stay with Wheels24 for the 2013 Formula 1 season – fresh reports every day.
The 25-year-old Red Bull driver dismissed suggestions that the many packages of upgrades for cars brought to Spain by the teams would make any difference - and reckoned the usual suspects would be up at the front.
'IN THE SAME BOAT'
Vettel said: "I don't think it will be a big surprise. Ideally, everybody makes a step forward and then we're all in the same boat."
Despite his reeling off two wins, a third and a fourth in the opening four races, he said there was still plenty of room for improvement by him and his dominant Red Bull team.
"You're not just looking at the raw result, but also how you achieved the result - we have some room for improvement. That's what we are targeting but I wouldn't say we are unhappy with what we have so far."
Pirelli has brought a new hard compound to the Spanish GP which has been designed to work in lower temperature ranges and give teams more strategy options but despite the changes, Vettel thinks managing tyre degradation of the tyres will still be the key to victory on Sunday.
"We know a little about what to expect given the information we received from Pirelli, but I don't expect a miracle," he said. "I think we will still have to work a lot around the tyre and make the tyre last. Whether it helps us a lot and whether this is the compound that we carry on using - talking about the hard tyre - we will know a little bit more after Sunday."
Vettel, Drivers' champion in 2010, 2011 and 2012, leads nearest rival Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus) by 10 points and third-placed Briton Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) by 27 points in the championship after four races.
Stay with Wheels24 for the 2013 Formula 1 season – fresh reports every day.