Sebastian Vettel has set himself up for a title showdown in Japan after taking a brilliant victory in Korea.
The Red Bull driver can take his fourth consecutive championship should he win the next race if Fernando Alonso, who finished sixth, fails to score.
The German had to deal with two safety car periods and an interruption from a fire truck which entered the circuit during the race, causing the second period behind the Mercedes SLS.
Kimi Raikkonen finished second for Lotus ahead of team-mate Romain Grosjean, whilst Nico Hulkenberg impressed massively to take fourth with a brilliant defensive drive to keep fifth placed Lewis Hamilton behind.
Whilst Vettel’s race was fairly uneventful, the same couldn’t be said for his team-mate Mark Webber who started 13th. Contact with Adrian Sutil resulted in his car errupting in flames.
That incident ended his race, but also caused a safety car when bizarrely a fire truck drove onto the circuit at its own accord, causing the racing pack to line up behind it.
Once the race restarted, Vettel pulled away to maintain a healthy lead and took the checkered flag for the eighth time in 2013.
Race Result – 2013 Korean Grand Prix:
| # | Driver | Team | Gap | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | S. Vettel | Red Bull | 25 | |
| 02. | K. Raikkonen | Lotus | +4.2 | 18 |
| 03. | R. Grosjean | Lotus | +4.9 | 15 |
| 04. | N. Hulkenberg | Sauber | +24.1 | 12 |
| 05. | L. Hamilton | Mercedes | +25.2 | 10 |
| 06. | F. Alonso | Ferrari | +26.1 | 8 |
| 07. | N. Rosberg | Mercedes | +26.6 | 6 |
| 08. | J. Button | McLaren | +32.2 | 4 |
| 09. | F. Massa | Ferrari | +34.3 | 2 |
| 10. | S. Perez | McLaren | +35.1 | 1 |
| 11. | E. Gutierrez | Sauber | +35.9 | |
| 12. | V. Bottas | Williams | +47.0 | |
| 13. | P. Maldonado | Williams | +50.0 | |
| 14. | C. Pic | Caterham | +1:03.5 | |
| 15. | G. van der Garde | Caterham | +1:04.5 | |
| 16. | J.Bianchi | Marussia | +1:07.9 | |
| 17. | M. Chilton | Marussia | +1:12.8 | |
| 18. | J-E. Vergne | Toro Rosso | Retired | |
| 19. | D. Ricciardo | Toro Rosso | Retired | |
| 20. | A. Sutil | Force India | Retired | |
| 21. | M. Webber | Red Bull | Retired | |
| 22. | P. di Resta | Force India | Retired |
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