4-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel’s parents lived in a caravan as they funded the youngster’s F1 dream.
4-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel had humble beginnings. He was born to Norbert and Heike Vettel in a sleepy town in west Germany called Heppenheim.
Norbert was a carpenter by trade. He was also a racing enthusiast who raced in Auto Slalom and other events. He’d work on Seb’s karts and instil the love for racing in the young German.
But Karting was an expensive sport back then as it is now. On average, a candidate spends close to $40,000 on mechanics, tyres, fuel, travel and an admission fee to enter various events.
Vettel began karting at the age of three. And by the age of eight, he started racing in karting series. Seb’s parents were not monetarily well-off.
But that did not stop Norbert Vettel from fulfilling his son’s ambitions. The family would live in a Caravan, on which they would travel across the country to participate in various races.
Vettel would dominate the karting scene and would come under the radar of Red Bull. And in 1998 at the age of 11, he would join the Red Bull Junior Team who would help in the climb up the racing ranks and eased the financial burden on the Vettel family.
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Sebastian Vettel’s story similar to Michael Schumacher
Sebastian Vettel acknowledged in an interview that Karting was n expensive hobby. He was fortunate to secure funding from Red Bull early on as his family could not afford it.
Vettel still believes the costs are still high. But even back then, it was difficult for someone like him to make it in Karting. He adds, “In all honesty, if I look back to when I started, costs were lower, but they were still high.
After making a name in Germany’s Karting scene he was spotted by someone who He said, “I mean I was very fortunate. I had Mr Gerhard Noack looking after me. He was the same man who looked after Michael Schumacher when he started”
Just like Vettel, Schumacher was born into a humble family. His family had pulled through the impossible to fund the F1 Legends’ karting career.
Vettel remembers Schumacher presenting him a trophy after a Karting event. And it was the 7-time World Champion who guided Seb to follow his dream and opened a pathway to race in F1.
Also Read: Michael Schumacher talks about his special bond with Sebastian Vettel
How Sebastian Vettel got in F1
Sebastian Vettel was already spotted by big names like Red Bull. He would win titles like the Junior Monaco Kart Cup in 2001. In 2004, He’d win 18 of 20 races to bag the 2004 Formula BMW ADAC championship.
His success gave him a seat in the 2005 F3 Championship alongside Lewis Hamilton and a chance to test for the BMW Williams F1 team. He was promoted as the test driver for BMW Sauber in 2006.
And in 2007, he’d replace the injured Robert Kubica for the 2007 US GP, making his F1 debut. He’d finish P8, scoring points on his F1 debut and becoming the then-youngest driver to score F1 points.
He was recalled by Red Bull Racing to drive for their Toro Rosso F1 team in 2008. And after a stellar pole position and race win in the 2008 Italian GP, he would be given the chance to drive for the Red Bull F1 team in 2009.
Here he’d go on to become the youngest F1 World Champion and win 4-consecutive titles from 2010-2013 with Red Bull. All of this would have been an unheard story, had his parent’s not sacrificed so much for the youngsters’ aspirations.
