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Vettel sitting tight at Red Bull

LONDON, England - Triple Formula 1 World champion Sebastian Vettel will race for Red Bull until the end of 2015 after the team announced he had extended his contract.

Vettel has won the last three championships and is leading the 2013 season by a 36 points after seven races following his latest display of dominance at the 2013 Canadian GP.

The sport's youngest World champion, who has been linked to Ferrari over the past few years, joined the Red Bull team in 2009 and has won 29 races, appearing on the podium 51 times with 39 pole positions.

ROOM FOR OPTIONS

Vettel's decision to extend by only a year could be significant as it allows him to hedge his bets until other coveted seats might be available.

Double World champion Fernando Alonso has a contract with Ferrari that runs until the end of 2016 - by which time Vettel will be 29 years-old, while Lewis Hamilton, the 2008 champion, signed a three-year deal with resurgent Mercedes in the end of 2012.

The engine rules are changing significantly for 2014, with a new turbocharged V6 unit with energy recovery systems being introduced, and there is no certainty that the current pecking order will remain the same.

Red Bull's design genius Adrian Newey, the brains behind a string of title-winning cars, could also grow restless and decide to explore other interests - particularly if engines become the dominant factor.

With 2009 World champion Jenson Button sure to stay at struggling McLaren, attention is likely to focus now on 2007 champion Kimi Raikkonen - out of contract with Lotus at the end of the 2013 season - and Felipe Massa's future at Ferrari.

Media speculation has linked Raikkonen to Red Bull as a replacement for Mark Webber, who will also be out of contract at the end of this year.

NO VETTEL, ALONSO 'DREAM TEAM'

Massa's situation is constantly under assessment, with Nico Hulkenberg seen as a leading contender following his move from Force India to Ferrari-powered Sauber.

Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali ruled out in January a "dream team pairing" of Vettel and Alonso - for the time being - amid speculation that the Vettel had a pre-contract to join in 2014.

However, Ferrari president Luca Di Montezemolo has called Vettel "a potential Ferrari driver for the future".

Red Bull will want to hang on to their champion for as long as they can, convinced that he will only get better over the next few years.

Team principal Christian Horner said: "He is continuing to get stronger. He is a very focused and determined young man, and has already achieved a huge amount in his career. But the impressive thing about him is how much desire he has to continue to improve himself. He obviously wants to achieve as much as he can."

Stay with Wheels24 for the 2013 F1 season – fresh reports every day.
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