Vettel hopes for no further Red Bull drama at home GP (2nd Roundup)

By John Bagratuni and Christian Hollmann Jul 18, 2010, 14:27 GMT

Hamburg - Sebastian Vettel drove a Red Bull Formula One car through his German home town of Heppenheim on Sunday amid hopes that the dust will settle over the latest dispute with team-mate Mark Webber.

'We did not haver a secret meeting ... It is important how things continue. If all goes well next week (at the German Grand Prix) no one is interested in Silverstone anymore,' Vettle said.

Vettel and Webber collided earlier in the season at the Turkish Grand Prix and tempers flared again after Webber won the July 11 British GP in Silverstone. The Australian complained that Vettel had received preferential treatment by the team when he got the one new front wing available. Webber won with an old front wing.

Vettel earlier told Der Spiegel news magazine in the latest issue published on Sunday that there is not too much love lost between him and Webber as every F1 driver is an egotiost and his clear aim the world title.

The Red Bull rivalry is only the latest in the sport which has seen plenty of bad blood between team-mates in the past.

Among the most famous were those between Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost and between Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso at McLaren.

Another truce has been established at Red Bull but Vettel said it was only natural for drivers to look after themselves first.

'The team is the priority ... (But) In the end the pecking order is led by the faster man ... Every driver is an egotist because you go down in Formula One if you aren't,' Vettel told Der Spiegel.

'The team-mate is the first you want to beat because he has the same equipment.'

Looking at his relationship with Webber, he said: 'There is always a certain distance. We work together in certain areas to bring the team forward and to further develop the car. But apart from that everyone is focussed on himself and seeks his own advantage.'

Both Red Bull drivers are well-positioned to win the world championship this season. Webber is third behind McLaren drivers Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button after 10 of 19 races. Vettel ranks fourth going into the Hockenheim home race on July 25.

Vettel, a runner-up to Button last season, made it clear that the title is his aim.

'I have no joy in being an also-ran. I need this self-affirmation that I am better than the others,' Vettel told Der Spiegel.

Red Bull are not giving out a team order but there has been talk that the team favours the younger Vettel over Webber because he represents their image in a better way.

'Look at the standings where Mark has more points than Sebastian. It wouldn't be correct to tell Mark he is the number two. And it wouldn't be correct either to tell Sebastian the same thing,' team boss Christian Horner told German news magazine Focus.

But Horner also said: 'Mark has only one, two or three years left. With Sebastian it is 10, 11 or 12. So if you talk about the future it is clearly Sebastian, who hopefully will spend many more years with the team.'