Sebastian Vettel landed himself a podium finish after a long, long wait during a soaked Turkish Grand Prix. Starting P11, one would have thought that a mere points finish would be the German’s objective.

But little did we know that this is a veteran driver still at the top of his game. Utilizing the conditions with all his experience, Vettel went past several cars in a chaotic opening lap of the race.

Following the race, he spoke to his engineer over the team radio with a hint of excitement in his voice. After all, 2020 has been nothing but difficult and frustrating for the Ferrari man.

Sebastian Vettel reveals he was “conservative” at Turn 8

The 33-year-old had a fantastic opening lap, but it was never a bed of roses for him through the course of the race. He had to battle Charles Leclerc and Alex Albon along the way but eventually made it in the end.

Vettel’s engineer during the final lap said, “Go for it, go for it!”. To which Vettel responded by saying, “Nearly. Nearly had him!”

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Vettel continued, “Yeah thank you, was an intense race. I think I will sleep well tonight. It was difficult with the intermediates initially, took a while to wake up, maybe I was also a bit conservative especially Turn 8.”

There was a monumental struggle for drivers to get a grip on their cars. The conditions were extremely treacherous, and Vettel was also a victim of the elements during the initial phases of the race.

Things got better for Vettel after his second pit stop

Once the dry lines started appearing out onto the track, Vettel had a little more comfort than the other cars in the midfield battle. He was helped in his pursuit for P3, with both Red Bulls making mistakes and slipping out of contention.

Vettel kept the race pace going after getting some laps under the new set of intermediates. That allowed him to solidify a decent gap over his teammate Charles Leclerc as well.

In the final lap, Leclerc got off the track, which allowed Vettel to go past him. But ultimately, it was a moment to cherish for the German as he won his first podium finish since the 2019 Mexico Grand Prix.