Sebastian Vettel has defended his former mentor Michael Schumacher.

The seven time world champion has been roundly criticised since last Sunday’s Spanish grand prix, after crashing into Williams’ Bruno Senna at the end of the Barcelona straight.

He called the Brazilian driver an “idiot” on the radio and later defended the outburst, but the FIA did not agree, imposing a five-place qualifying penalty for Monte Carlo for causing a collision.

“For us, that manoeuvre of Michael’s cost us a lot,” Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said on Austrian Servus TV.

He said the debris from the crash not only damaged Vettel’s front wing, but led to the reigning world champion having to serve a drive-through penalty due to activating his DRS wing in the yellow-flag zone.

German Vettel, however, defended Schumacher.

“In those situations we don’t have much time of course,” he said, “and you can get very great speed differences (between the cars) on the straights.

“I think it should be classified simply in the category of racing accidents. Unfortunately it happens,” said the reigning world champion.

“Of course you can always say what is what afterwards,” added Vettel, “just as you can say that it always takes two to tango.”

Mercedes’ Norbert Haug was less eager to comment, although he did tell Germany’s Sport1 that the team “accepts the verdict of the race stewards”.

As the 2010 world championship battles heats up, so too is the competitive rivalry between Red Bull’s teammates.

Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel are openly not friends, but with just two races to go this season and 14 points between them, some believe Vettel should now be helping his Australian teammate to the title.

“I am not giving up,” 23-year-old German Vettel said on Thursday in an interview with the DPA press agency.

“It would be stupid to give up the belief in the title. I will continue to fight,” he promised.

Vettel was asked whether he has a cooperative “deal” in place with Webber as the season winds down.

“That is too far away,” he answered. “I must just concentrate on my performance.”

Earlier this week, Webber indicated Vettel is only regarded as the team’s “superstar” because of his young age.

Vettel’s apparent rejoinder is a barb about the pair’s exits from the recent Korean grand prix, with Webber crashing and Vettel retiring with an engine failure.

“Let’s put it this way: I would have been far more disappointed if I had thrown away the car over a personal fault,” said the German.

He said he is not worried about losing the support of his team in deference to Webber.

“I know that my team supports me and that I don’t have to be worried,” answered Vettel.

Christian Horner on Wednesday said it is “ridiculous” to suggest Mark Webber tried deliberately to take out his rivals after crashing in Sunday’s Korean grand prix.

Former grand prix winner Gerhard Berger said on Tuesday that the Australian “could have hit the brakes” after crashing out of second place during the rain-hit race in Yeongam.

“Yes, I think that’s very clear,” said the Austrian. “It’s very obvious, you can see his wheels are not locked up.”

Webber actually collected the Mercedes of Nico Rosberg, but – according to Berger – he “would have preferred” to wipe title contenders Fernando Alonso or Lewis Hamilton out of the race.

Red Bull team boss Horner responded: “As with every incident in formula one, opinions will always be made without all the facts.

“Just to be absolutely clear — Mark’s intention was not to take out another driver after his crash and it’s ridiculous to suggest otherwise,” he told the Telegraph.

Horner admitted that Webber’s RB6 was “badly damaged” after his initial contact with the wall, but his attempt to keep the car going was a “natural and immediate instinct” to get back into the race.

“It’s absurd to suggest that Mark would ever deliberately take out another driver,” added Horner.

Gerhard Berger has accused Mark Webber of wanting to take out a championship rival after crashing in Sunday’s Korean grand prix.

Australian Webber, who at the time was leading the world championship by 14 points, spun on a wet kerb whilst running second at Yeongam and struck the wall.

But his Red Bull then rolled back across the circuit, collecting the Mercedes of Nico Rosberg.

“I don’t understand why Webber didn’t hit the brakes,” said Rosberg. “It was crazy to roll back across the track like that.”

Former grand prix winner Berger said on Monday: “He could have hit the brakes and stopped the car at the wall.

“He took out Rosberg, but it was the wrong one. I think in his mind he would have preferred Alonso or Hamilton,” the former Ferrari and McLaren driver told Austrian Servus TV.

Asked to clarify whether he thinks Webber’s move was deliberate, Berger – a former co-owner of the second Red Bull team Toro Rosso – added: “Yes, I think that’s very clear.

“He goes off and he knows it’s over. In this moment you’re frustrated and a thousand thoughts go through your head.

“It’s very obvious, you can see his wheels are not locked up. Perhaps he had a brake problem, but I don’t think so.”

Vitaly Petrov will move five places down the inaugural Korean GP grid in two weeks.

FIA stewards decided to penalise the Russian rookie for crashing into Williams’ Nico Hulkenberg before the first corner of Sunday’s Japanese race at Suzuka.

Hulkenberg had a bad start and was passed by the Renault, who hit the German’s front wheel by turning back onto the racing line too soon.

Petrov argued that he moved too soon to avoid Nick Heidfeld, but the stewards announced that he had “caused a collision”.

Also investigated by the stewards at Suzuka was Felipe Massa’s first corner crash, when he lost control on the inside grass and took out the Force India of Vitantonio Liuzzi.

“He seemed to come into my side like a bullet,” said Liuzzi.

The FIA officials, however, took no action.

Jun.16 (GMM)  Sauber must now turn its attention to designing a much better car for next season.

That was the assessment of team owner and boss Peter Sauber in the wake of last weekend’s Canadian grand prix.

After an uncompetitive and unreliable start to the post-BMW period this year, there had been signs of a recovery until Montreal, where the C29 was faster only than the three new teams.

“We are only able to tinker with this car,” Sauber, 66, is quoted as saying by the veteran Blick correspondent Roger Benoit.

“It was an unpleasant parting gift from BMW and Willy Rampf,” he added.  “All our hopes rest now with the C30 for next year.”

Pedro de la Rosa has already confirmed he is on the market for a job for 2011, while the Japanese rookie Kamui Kobayashi has also been unconvincing.

Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport gave the 23-year-old a “1 out of 10″ for the Canada weekend, after almost being outqualified by a Lotus and then crashing on the first lap.

“Kamui came into my office and apologised immediately,” Sauber revealed.  “Okay, that is the price one pays if one goes to the line with a rookie.”

One of the three stewards on duty in Monaco last weekend has revealed the officials were too busy to consider giving Rubens Barrichello a penalty.

After Michael Schumacher was demoted six places for illegally overtaking Fernando Alonso on the last lap, it was suggested that Brazilian Barrichello should also have received a penalty.

Television footage during the race showed the Williams driver throwing his steering wheel onto the racing line after crashing, only for it to be collected by HRT’s Karun Chandhok.

The steering wheel was then dislodged in the tunnel, only for it to be run over by the other Hispania car.

Barrichello, 37, has denied he acted recklessly by arguing that he wanted to quickly abandon the burning wreck that was facing the wrong way on the racing line.

But Paul Gutjahr, one of the four Monaco stewards, told Switzerland’s Blick newspaper that the incident did not initially escape their attention.

“Actually, we had Barrichello on the list,” the Swiss admitted.

He explained that the issue simply fell off the agenda in the “hectic rush” to sort out the controversial Schumacher manoeuvre.

(GMM)

Rubens Barrichello has denied claims he recklessly endangered his F1 rivals after crashing out of Sunday’s Monaco grand prix.

The Brazilian veteran threw his steering wheel onto the racing line after shunting due to a technical problem whilst climbing Beau Rivage at high speed.

The impacts dented the Armco barriers on both sides of the Monaco layout, and in apparent frustration Barrichello, who turns 38 this Sunday, threw his $50,000 steering wheel onto the track.

It was promptly run over by Karun Chandhok, who dragged the expensive debris all the way to the tunnel before it came loose and was run over again by Bruno Senna.

It was a spring from Barrichello’s Brawn that last year struck the hapless Felipe Massa on the helmet.

It is also a fundamental rule breach not to re-connect the steering wheel after abandoning a stricken car.

“What was he doing?,” Chandhok said of Barrichello.  “Charlie (Whiting) actually asked me about it.  You see on the video that he just throws it.”

But the Williams driver insists: “I threw the steering wheel because I wanted to get out of the car as soon as possible.

“After the shunt I was facing the wrong side of the track and the car was on fire,” he argued.

Williams co-owner Patrick Head also defended his driver.

“If you are standing in the middle of a 120mph corner, you tend to think ‘let’s get out of here as quickly as you can’.”

(GMM)

Mark Webber on Sunday took over the lead of the world championship by winning his second consecutive grand prix in the space of a week.

The Australian, who was unchallenged in the Principality despite the appearance of several safety cars, dominated the entire Barcelona-Monaco double-header and is now level on points with his Red Bull teammate Sebastian Vettel.

Team boss Christian Horner urged Vettel to “relax” if he wants to get back on terms with the sister RB6.

“Sebastian dominated at the start of the season but Mark has really found his stride,” the Briton told the BBC.

“Seb is trying very hard and sometimes you have to relax a little bit and the times will come,” added Horner.

The biggest loser of the Monaco race is the former title leader Jenson Button, whose Mercedes engine overheated during the first safety car period because McLaren mechanics left a bung in his sidepod.

It was a fairly processional but nonetheless incident-packed race, with both Williams drivers crashing, and backmarker Jarno Trulli mounting Karun Chandhok’s HRT right in front of the leader Webber.

There is also a post-race controversy in the stewards’ room, after Fernando Alonso was passed by Michael Schumacher in the short blast between the safety car pulling in and the waving of the chequered flag.

There is some uncertainty as to whether overtaking is allowed in those circumstances on the last lap, with Mercedes’ Ross Brawn and Ferrari’s Stefano Domenicali both telling TV reporters their opposing views.

“Our understanding of the regulations is pretty clear but let’s just see what the stewards say,” said Domenicali.

(GMM)