Red Bull Racing have confirmed that a spark plug failure, and not an exhaust issue, was responsible for Sebastian Vettel’s disappointing finish to Sunday’s Bahrain GP.
The German, fancied by many to sneak the world championship in the new sesaon, was in pole position for 2010’s first race and led for much of it. However, he eventually had to settle for fourth-placed finish in Sakhir after suddenly losing power in the 33rd lap of 49.
Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso was the major beneficiary as he won the race ahead of team-mate Felipe Massa and McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton also got ahead of Vettel to make up the podium finishers.
A fault with the exhaust was initially believed to be the reason that Vettel failed late on. However, a post-race examination of the car has revealed that it was, in fact, a spark plug problem that cost the Red Bull man his shot of an opening day ten-point haul.
It was a disappointing finish for Vettel who had looked so solid in the lead before the failure.