Sebastian Vettel felt on top of the world after getting everything out of his final Formula 1 qualifying session that he could possibly have hoped for.
The four-time world champion has decided to hang up his helmet at the end of the season and move on to new challenges. But 'retiring' is the wrong word for the 35-year-old who looked as in-form as ever in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.
The Aston Martin driver made it through to the final round of qualifying and will start his last Grand Prix from ninth place.
“I was very pleased with how the session went. Very happy. We got everything together,” he told the media in the paddock at Yas Marino after the end of the session.
“It’s the bit where you are able to go fastest and push the limit, so I enjoyed every lap that I had.
© Aston Martin F1
"The car is doing what I want this weekend and this has contributed to this decent result. I have been very motivated and it felt as if there was a bit extra in me today.
"We did have some traffic in Q1 and Q2 with a Red Bull at the last corner, but the lap in Q3 was clean.
"I wish I had another set [of soft tyres] in that last segment," he continued. "But overall I think it was very good for us. It puts us in a good spot for tomorrow."
Asked if today's session made him sorry that he'd decided to call it a day, Vettel responded: "No regrets today. It was a good day.
“It was a bit emotional before getting in the car," he admitted. "Once I was in the car, was all thoughts were on qualifying, the laps. And it was coming alive, I was coming alive, so it felt good.”
Sunday's race will be Vettel's 299th F1 start, which has spanned 53 race wins and 57 pole positions since he made his debut at the age of 19 in the 2007 United States Grand Prix with BMW Sauber as a stand-in for Robert Kubica.
“Before qualifying I had some thoughts about the people that can’t be here because they’re not with us anymore or they didn’t make it," he acknowledged. "Obviously there’s a lot of people that are here, which is very special time.
“It’s been a long time and it’s a funny feeling, I have to admit. But as soon as you’re in the car and you drive out, you’re quite busy. So it’s I guess a good sign."
But Vettel is determined to brush aside the significance of the occasion and focus on the job in hand, as he seeks to ensure that Aston Martin finishes the season in sixth place in the constructors championship.
To do that, he and team mate Lance Stroll )starting from P14) need to overcome a five point deficit to Alfa Romeo drivers Zhou Guanyu and Valtteri Bottas who will line up in P15 and P18 respectively.
“Absolutely, we’ll try to do that, we’ll see what happens,” he said. "We have a job on our hands, we want to beat [them] and try to get sixth.
“I feel we have the right tyres with us and it should be a good race," he added. "I am looking forward to the race, my last in F1
"I hope we will be able to deliver a good result for the team as I end my journey with everyone at Aston Martin," he said. "Anything can happen here, and we will try to maximise our chances tomorrow.”
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