Nov.19 (GMM) For superstitious Sebastian Vettel, the fact he is 'unlucky 13' points ahead of Fernando Alonso on the cusp of his third drivers' title will not be lost on the German.

"Let's see if it will be lucky in seven days time in Sao Paulo," said Ferrari in a post-race statement.

Actually, the points gap gives Vettel a huge advantage for the 2012 finale, because even if Alonso can drag his less competitive car to the top of the Interlagos podium, Red Bull's German could then finish just fourth and still be champion.

"Maybe on paper that chance is not so big, maybe 25 per cent," Spaniard Alonso, who has been quoting much bigger percentage chances recently, said after Austin.

"But deep down, I feel it (the chance) is much more than that.

"Anything can happen at Interlagos and we saw again how important reliability can be, didn't we?"

He is referring to Mark Webber's failure in the sister Red Bull on Sunday with yet another alternator problem.

And there is also a forecast of rain for Sunday in Brazil.

"Clearly, if it's dry and we have a normal race, one can expect Red Bull to be in front of everyone and us on the third or fourth row, so the more unknown factors there are, the better it is for us," said Alonso.

Jaime Alguersuari, a former Red Bull-contracted driver but a Spaniard like Alonso, thinks Vettel will be heading to Sao Paulo feeling nervous.

Asked if the title is now all but decided, he told Mundo Deportivo: "For the best car yes, for the best driver, no.

"Brazil will be a very uncomfortable race for Vettel, and very comfortable for Fernando," he said.

"Vettel can only lose the championship, because in theory he has already won. But theory doesn't give you ten points.

"Fernando, who at the age of 31 knows something about formula one after 11 years, is already the de-facto runner-up and so he can only win.

"Who has been involved in elite sport knows what can go wrong when you are defending an advantage, and how well you can go when you have nothing to lose.

"So Brazil will give us something very interesting," said Alguersuari.

Latest F1 News - Mobile version

26 Feb: New Ferrari not quickest in field - Domenicali 26 Feb: Red Bull still best in 2013 - Tost 26 Feb: 2014 French grand prix 'possible' - Prost 26 Feb: Danica Patrick 'not interested' in F1 switch 26 Feb: Report - Gilles Simon working on F1 engine for Honda 26 Feb: Gutierrez plays down link to Carlos Slim 26 Feb: Caterham exhaust 'legal' insists van der Garde 26 Feb: McLaren replaces Mercedes-bound Lowe 25 Feb: 'Engine maps' trouble for Red Bull, Lotus - report 25 Feb: Mercedes-bound Lowe to miss 2013 opener - report 25 Feb: Mercedes 'in group of teams' behind Red Bull - Lauda 25 Feb: Gutierrez expects Hulkenberg to beat him early in 2013 25 Feb: New Ferrari 'much better' than 2012 - Massa 25 Feb: Teams 'will adapt' to new tyre situation - Gutierrez 25 Feb: Tight rules make today's F1 cars 'the same' - Forghieri 25 Feb: Williams removes controversial exhaust trick 25 Feb: Contract 'conflicts' cause of Marussia test snub - Razia 25 Feb: Lotus to fight Red Bull for title - Gutierrez 25 Feb: Marussia 'ahead of Caterham' - Chilton 25 Feb: Sutil will not stay in F1 as test driver The latest F1 News - Mobile Version

F1 News  F1 Schedule  F1 Line-up  Constructors' Championship  Drivers' Championship  F1 Tickets  Live F1 Coverage

Full Version: Formula 1 News  Formula 1 Schedule  Formula 1 Line-up  Constructors' Championship  Drivers' Championship  Live F1 Coverage  10 'n' Pole  F1 Regulations  The Forums  Motorsport Shop  F1 Merchandise  F1 Tickets  F1 Diecast  F1 Videos  F1 Games