Why customer cars remain an unsolvable problem for F1
OPINION: Talk of customer cars in Formula 1 has returned as it assesses its essential nature and plans for the future, but going down that road would be the wrong route
Sebastian Vettel's first Formula 1 victory was certainly a memorable one. The up-and-coming driver did what many highly-rated youngsters cannot - win a grand prix in a firmly midfield car.
Sure, there were extenuating circumstances - the prevailing wet weather that Italian Grand Prix weekend at Monza in 2008, the championship contenders qualifying down the field - but he still had to do the job. Which of course he did, from pole, to give the ex-Minardi Toro Rosso squad (now known as AlphaTauri) its first, and so far only, F1 win.
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Alex Kalinauckas is Autosport's Grand Prix Editor, covering every Formula 1 race since the start of 2020. After completing a master's degree in journalism at Goldsmiths College University of London in 2014, he worked for a range of motorsport and technology publications while covering national racing as an Autosport freelancer.
A lifelong motorsport fan - no one in his family can explain quite how or why such a development first occurred - Alex joined the Autosport staff in April 2017 as the magazine’s Assistant Editor covering Formula 2 and GP3, before being made Formula E correspondent and Autosport.com’s Plus Editor in March 2018. He lives in north-east London and is constantly frustrated by the Central Line.
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