Vettel: Too bad I missed the last race in Suzuka . spent

Sebastian Vettel finished sixth at Suzuka and repeated his best result of the season. Thanks to this result, the Aston Martin driver stayed ahead of Daniel Ricciardo in the individual standings and climbed to 11th place. His teammate Lance Stroll finished twelfth.

Sebastian Vettel (6th): “It’s a shame we only spent half the race, but it’s good that the fans in the stands saw the fight. We waited for the rain to stop before the restart, but I can understand how frustrating it was to sit in the stands in the rain for several hours.

I had a very good start, but in the first corner I collided with another car. I didn’t see anything and I don’t know what exactly happened – aquaplaning started or I made a mistake myself. However, I lost all back positions won and was the last.

At the restart we made the right decision to go straight to the pits for intermediate tyres. The team had a great pit stop, after which I attacked with all my might and eliminated most of the pack. It was a dream weekend and eight earned points is a stunning result.

It’s a shame I spent the last race at this track, but we had a great weekend and I want to thank all the fantastic fans in Suzuka.

Lance Walk (12th): “Before the start I noticed a drier stretch of asphalt and decided to go from there – the plan worked, the first lap turned out to be cool. In the first laps there was no grip and we saw almost nothing. Race management had to make a difficult decision, but the race was halted after Carlos Sainz’ accident.

I don’t think visibility was much better at the time of the restart, but it gradually improved. Overall, the race turned out to be event-rich and the fans gave incredible support, despite the weather. Now we look forward to racing in Austin and Mexico City.”

Mike Krak, Team principal: “We saw a nice, but not too long race. Most importantly, we pleased the amazing Japanese fans, who bravely endured the rain in the stands, and the viewers around the world, who stayed in front of the TVs despite the long break.

As for Aston Martin, we finished sixth for the second race in a row thanks to Sebastian’s excellent driving skills. This was made possible by the right strategy to switch to intermediate tires immediately before the restart and the excellent work of the guys at the pit stop, leading Sebastian Nicholas Latifi to lead.

Lance pressed hard on the second set of intermediate tires, to which he switched after another good strategic decision by the team, finishing in a high twelfth place.