Sebastian Vettel has become the first active Formula 1 driver to sign up for this November’s Race of Champions at the former Olympic Stadium in London.
Vettel is a six-time winner of the Race of Champions Nations’ Cup, representing Team Germany alongside Michael Schumacher en route to victory each year between 2007 and 2012.
After missing the 2014 event in Barbados, Vettel will now return to the Race of Champions this winter as he goes in search of his first individual title.
“I’m looking forward to returning to the Race Of Champions, which I’ve enjoyed competing in since my Formula 1 debut in 2007,” Vettel said. It is going to be very exciting to race cars in the Stadium that hosted the 2012 London Olympic Games.
“Of course I’ll miss having Michael as my team-mate this time but I’ll try my best to bring the ROC Nations Cup trophy back to Germany and to win my first individual ROC title. That is one trophy that is still missing from my collection…”
The Race of Champions pits drivers from a number of different racing championships against each other in a multi-discipline challenge over two days as they battle for both national and individual honors.
“It’s brilliant news that Sebastian will join us at this year’s Race Of Champions at London’s former Olympic Stadium,” Race of Champions president Fredrik Johnsson said.
“When he raced at Wembley in 2007 it was still a year before his first F1 grand prix win but it was clear to everyone watching that they were in the presence of something special – not least when he beat World Rally Champion Marcus Gronholm in his own rally car.
“Since then Seb has proved himself to be one of the greatest drivers of all time with four F1 world championships and counting.
“His podiums for Ferrari this year show he is still at the very top of his game and he will no doubt be as keen as ever to push to the limit in the identical machinery on offer at the Race Of Champions.”
Vettel will be joined at the former Olympic Stadium by nine-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen, rally driver Petter Solberg and ex-F1 driver David Coulthard for the Race of Champions.
According to a report by the Daily Mail in the UK, Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button are also in talks with the organizers over a possible entry. Given that it is just one week before the F1 season finale in Abu Dhabi, though, timing may prove to be a stumbling block.