Sobbing Sebastian Vettel is Formula One's youngest champion

The kid could just not choose between emotions.

Standing on the podium while the German national anthem played, Red Bull Racing driver Sebastian Vettel looked like he would break down at any moment. But then he would smile again after looking at his team standing below the podium at the Yas Marina Circuit, the venue of the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Vettel is now 23 years and 135 days old and has become the youngest world champion. McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton was 23 years and 166 days when he became the champion in 2008. This win is something the German will surely remember for a very long time.

The season has been pretty tight but he has stuck to the job with utmost dedication and support from the team. Three wins in the last four races of the season is testimony to that. For an energy drink manufacturer-sponsored team to beat some of the best in the business and clinch the constructors’ and drivers’ title is no ordinary achievement.

There was surely quite a bit of pressure on the young man from Heppenheim and he admitted later that he was having trouble falling asleep on Saturday night. But it all turned out well in the end and he is the king of the Formula One world now.

Red Bull boss Christian Horner, Australian Mark Webber and Vettel have maintained throughout the weekend that they would just focus on winning and who becomes champion depends on how the others end up. But this pole-to-chequered flag win from Vettel proved that he has really done his homework, put his head down and stuck to the job.

But Vettel and Red Bull must not forget the service Renault drivers Robert Kubica and Vitaly Petrov have done them. With Vettel always in the lead, Hamilton, who finished second, was putting up a very good pace. But the Brit struggled quite a bit in his bid to get past Kubica, who was ahead.

That probably was one of the crucial aspects of the race that kept making Vettel’s bid stronger lap after lap.

While Hamilton took things in his stride after he ended up fourth in the championship, Ferrari driver, and championship leader before the final race, Fernando Alonso was grim as anyone could be after his seventh place finish. He is one driver who has really worked hard and stayed in the fray throughout the season. But to lose the world drivers’ championship by a margin of just four points (256 for Vettel and 252 for Alonso) is nothing short of heartbreaking.

It was written all over his face as the Spaniard sat in the Ferrari pit garage dejected, all the while being consoled by his team members. While Vettel will be celebrating, it will be mixed feelings for Webber in the Red Bull camp.