Sebastian Vettel jumped in the passenger of the iconic car to enjoy a ride with the 1984 World Rally Champion Stig Blomqvist.
The Race of Champions(ROC) returned to track after two years due to the havoc brought by the Covid-19 pandemic. Four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel was one of the guests of the event along with the 1984 World Rally Champion Stig Blomqvist.
As part of the supporting action, rally legend Blomqvist was at the event to demonstrate the Group B Audi in which he won the title.
Vettel grabbed the opportunity of Blomqvist’s presence on the track and begged to get a ride with Blomqvist in an Audi Quattro S1 at the event and described it as a ‘magical’ experience.
Vettel jumped in the passenger seat during one of the demonstrations on Saturday. Seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson also did the same on Sunday.
When questioned if this was a bucket list item, Vettel said, “More than that. I think the car is iconic, but then to have the chance to ride with Stig – and the proper one, not the made-up one – has been really cool.”
“I’m very grateful that Stig still does these types of events and then I was begging to get into the car and I used the opportunity to go side by side. It was magical in many ways. So I really enjoyed it.”
“In that car, I’m not sure I would be a passenger in a rally like the Monte Carlo or another one with the longest straights and faster corners! But it was really cool.”
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Sebastian Vettel was defeated by Sebastian Loeb
In 2022, the Race of Champions moved to the north of Sweden and became a snow and ice event. Vettel enjoyed the ice driving following ROC’s move. Although he struggled on the track during the Nations Cup on Saturday.
While his teammate Mick Schumacher did all that he could to prevent Team Germany from disqualifying at the quarter-final stage, Vettel himself had won only one of his four heats.
However, on Sunday, in the individual Champion of Champions competition, Vettel was much more fierce. He made it to the final stage but was beaten by World Rally Champion Sebastian Loeb by 3-1.
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Vettel accepted his defeat and admitted that he “did not expect that after yesterday when he struggled to really get the feel.”
“This morning, getting into the groove, I felt more and more comfortable with every run,” he said.
“I knew in the final it would be a big stretch. And I pushed really hard. I was in the snowbanks a couple of times, so maybe I pushed a little bit too hard! But I knew I had to go for it in order to be close with Seb.
“Most of the runs it was very obvious [in Loeb’s favour]. With the electric rallycross car, he did me a favour. He didn’t know but I think I hit the snowbank first, so I was lucky to continue and then I saw him [stuck]. But I took it, I wasn’t sure how quickly he was coming back out and where we exactly were.
“Then I tried a lot on the buggy, it was a bit closer that run. But in his favour and therefore he deserved to win.”
Also Read: Sebastian Vettel loses to Sebastien Loeb in the finals of the 2022 Race of Champions
