Glock thinks he’s as good as Vettel
The Marussia driver assures that his position at the back of the grid does not affect his motivation and claims to be as good as Sebastian Vettel, the new darling of the public across the Rhine.
By securing his second consecutive world championship title, Sebastian Vettel has won over the German public, somewhat overshadowing – alongside Michael Schumacher – the rest of the ‘Mannschaft’. Relegated to the back of the grid, Timo Glock had his moment of glory under the F1 spotlight, before the Vettel phenomenon ignited the crowds with victories, but especially before Toyota left him with no other options but to try to bounce back in one of the new teams that joined the world championship in 2010.
However, Timo Glock insists he has nothing to envy about Sebastian Vettel, at least from a talent perspective: “I know I’m just as good as Seb: if we were both driving the Red Bull, only the form of the day would make the difference,” the Marussia driver tells the Kölner Express. “Unfortunately, I’m not racing against Sebastian but against Lotus, so my motivation is to keep the gap between us as small as possible.”
The opportunity to face the now double world champion unfortunately doesn’t seem likely to present itself for Glock, who, not wanting to swell the ranks of those vying for mid-field seats, has committed to Marussia until 2014. Some indeed question this choice by the German, even within his close environment: « It’s quite funny! I recently talked with a former mechanic from Toyota, and he asked me how I could stay motivated when we were fighting for the podium, and now I’m struggling for 20th place. It’s simple, when I get in the car, I’m always motivated. Even if it’s for the wooden spoon, I fight until the last meter. »
Timo Glock also congratulates himself on these small reasons for satisfaction that often go unnoticed: « In Valencia, I was 21st on the grid, but we were at 110%. In Silverstone, I qualified ahead of Trulli and started ahead of Chandhok at the Nürburgring. That’s what makes me happy. »
The season for the British team – which will race under the Russian flag in 2012 – was far from meeting expectations, with Timo Glock and Jérôme d’Ambrosio even being pushed to their limits by an HRT team that everyone seemed to doubt would survive after the Australian Grand Prix. The native of Lindenfels, however, expects his team to finally make the anticipated leap forward in 2012, after parting ways with their technical director, Nick Wirth – responsible for the CFD design of the MVR-02 – and after concluding new partnerships: « We are now in partnership with McLaren, which I think will allow us to make the necessary step forward. McLaren competes for the title and wins, thus showing the way for our team.
As Christmas approaches, Glock can only hope that his wishes have been heard, even if the wait is likely to be long.
