Sebastian Vettel (GER) and Nico Hulkenberg (GER) at Race of Champions, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London, England, 20-21 November 2015. © Race of Champions
The annual competition, this year staged on a brand new Olympic cycling-style pursuit track, pits competitors against each other in identical machinery and the 2015 final saw Vettel defeat nine-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner Tom Kristensen.
“Of course I’m very happy and honoured to win - but that took a while!” said the German, who has won the ROC Nations Cups six times previously with Michael Schumacher, but never the individual event.
“A lot of world class racing drivers have won this trophy. I’ve tried to win this many times and failed many times but finally I’ve succeeded.
“What the Race of Champions gives us is a lot of joy. When we were kids starting to race, we did it for pure joy and this sort of event is a good reminder of that. When you close the visor, ultimately victory is still what drives you.”
Teamed with Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg, Vettel just lost out on the 2015 Nations Cup title. They were just two of several Formula One drivers taking part in the ROC, along with big names from the worlds of rallying, IndyCar, MotoGP and more.
Other F1 names included Lotus’s Romain Grosjean and Jolyon Palmer, Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren’s Jenson Button, and Williams’ Susie Wolff, making her last competitive motorsport appearance before retirement.
