Jonathan Noble: Off Line

Hit the brake. By the time Sebastian Vettel's brain had instructed his foot to do just that, it was already too late. He had slipped over the line from the hero of the day, to zero.

Sliding into the back of Mark Webber's Red Bull Racing machine, Vettel showed how quickly perceptions change in this sport. Until that moment, the young German had been the sensation of the weekend.

He had been brilliant in the wet on Saturday, getting Toro Rosso through to Q3 for the first time in its short history. Equally good in the race, he was steering his car to what looked set to be a maiden podium finish.

So you could not help but feel sorry for him when it all ended in the most embarrassing of ways. Shunting out in spectacular fashion while racing wheel-to- wheel is one thing. But crashing behind a safety car? And, even worse, into one of your sister cars? No one deserves that.

Webber was obviously furious afterwards, blasting that Vettel's inexperience had played a key part in allowing him to get caught out by Lewis Hamilton's braking and accelerating tactics behind the safety car.

Vettel was not so sure, and his drooped shoulders as he stood talking in the Fuji paddock after the race told all you needed to know about how guilty he felt. He was not just fishing for excuses.

"I don't want to say now that it was Lewis's fault, because in the end it is a race and a lot of things happen," he said. "But at that stage the safety car lights were still on, so I wasn't looking to stay as close as possible even though it was five corners to the end.

"I saw Lewis going really slow and I thought that maybe he had made a mistake or had even retired. Then I think Mark did the same thing, so had to slow down a lot. And then at the same moment I was in his car.

"I don't think it was a lack of experience. In the end I did a lot of races under these conditions behind a safety car, and also today 12 laps in the beginning even behind five cars, so it is a shame."

No matter how much it hurt at the time, Vettel will come away from Fuji stronger. He showed he's got the talent to race at the sharp end of the grid; and you can be sure he will be more than ready for any safety car spells in the future.

Vettel's team, boss Franz Tost, is certainly one of those racing men who doesn't dwell for a second on what might have been. What happened, happened. His eyes are now on Shanghai this weekend.

"Sebastian was very disappointed but that is racing, and the emotions must be stopped now," he said. "We are looking forward to the last two races and I am convinced he will be 100 per cent concentrated on his job for Shanghai.

"Anyway, for Sebastian this year is a preparation for the future and I think all the race experience, especially after such incidents, will help him in the future. That is what counts."

The good thing for Vettel is there are only a few days before the next race, leaving hardly any time to get himself wound up about what happened.

"Yeah, maybe," he said when asked if it was a good thing there wasn't a lengthy break before the next race. "There's not too much time to dig around and start thinking about crazy things..."