Sebastian Vettel Pays Tribute to 'Hero' Michael Schumacher After Winning Malaysian GP

Sebastian Vettel stunned dominant Mercedes to win the Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday. With this victory, Vettel also ended his barren run in only his second race for Ferrari. He was in tears of joy and described the win as 'incredible'.

 

"It feels incredible. To see the guys (team) when I was on the podium looking down, it was an incredible atmosphere," he said. (Ferrari put the fizz back into Formula One)

 

The 27-year-old, who recorded his 40th victory, paid an emotional tribute to his childhood "hero" Michael Schumacher, who won five consecutive titles for Ferrari from 2000-2004.

 

"It's been my dream. Michael was my hero. All the kids at the go-kart track looked up to him," he said. "When he turned up to shake hands every year it made our lives. I don't understand yet how special it is."

 

It was Vettel's dream first win for Ferrari, who endured their worst season in 21 years in 2014. He said his target is to take the team to the another level.

 

"Michael left very large footsteps but the target is not to fill those but to leave some new ones. Our goal is to bring the world championship back to Maranello, we know these guys are incredibly strong and very difficult to beat," Vettel said.

 

Schumacher suffered a severe brain injury in a skiing accident in December 2013, and is still undergoing rehabilitation at home.

 

Vettel, the four-time world champion with Red Bull Racing from 2010-2013, replaced Fernando Alonso after the Spaniard left for McLaren following a poor season last year. Vettel too had a winless 2014 season, which was dominated by Mercedes.