Sebastian Vettel won four Formula 1 titles for Red Bull between 2010 and 2013, but it’s not the only impressive thing he achieved.
Despite new tracks being added to the calendar, and having to face one of the most talented grids of all time, with as many as six other world champions in 2012, he remained on top.
A lot of the time, Red Bull didn’t have a completely dominant car. In 2011 and 2013 though, Vettel was in a league of his own.
He won 11 of 19 races in 2011, including one at a new track. In fact, he claimed pole position and dominated the race too, by leading every lap.
The Indian Grand Prix was only on the calendar for three years, but it had an incredibly long back straight, and a picturesque, but challenging banked right-hand corner in sector two. On paper, it could have been a great event.
Sebastian Vettel was the only ever winner of the Indian Grand Prix
Sadly, the race only lasted for three seasons between 2011 and 2013, before it was dropped from the calendar in 2014 due to financial and logistical reasons.
It means that after three years of Formula 1 visiting the Buddh International Circuit, there had only ever been one winner.
Vettel won the race on three consecutive occasions, taking all three pole positions and leading every lap in 2011 and 2012.
In 2013, it became a significant part of the sport’s history when Vettel secured his fourth and final title for Red Bull, going on to perform donuts on the main straight after the race.
He kneeled and prayed to his RB9, which he won the last nine consecutive races of the season in, before going an entire season without taking a victory in 2014.
Which F1 drivers took podiums at the Indian Grand Prix?
Just six drivers ever received the privilege of stepping onto the podium at the Indian Grand Prix, with two drivers managing to do so on more than one occasion.
Fernando Alonso managed to finish third in 2011 and second in 2012 to be the only driver other than Vettel with multiple appearances.
Other than those two champions, Jenson Button, Mark Webber, Nico Rosberg and Romain Grosjean all have trophies to show for.
Notably, the 2013 instalment of the race saw Vettel win by nearly 30 seconds, while just four cars finished within a minute of him in 2011.
It was the true peak of both Red Bull and the German’s dominance in the sport. Whether or not the race will host Formula 1 again is unknown, but if it does, then Vettel’s records will be broken after his retirement in 2022.