Title race not over for Vettel

A dominant Sebastian Vettel is refusing to believe he already has one hand on this year's Formula One world championship following a fourth consecutive victory.

Since Lewis Hamilton retired with a gearbox failure on lap 23 of the Singapore Grand Prix last month, Vettel has not looked back, chalking up a phenomenal total of 204 consecutive laps in the lead.

But with three races remaining, Vettel has no intention of taking anything for granted as he said: "This was obviously another good step for us, but there is still a long way to go."

He added: "It obviously feels fantastic to have a race where everything works the way you want it to, so I'm very proud, very happy and enjoying it.

"But we have seen this year how quickly things can change, so this race has gone and now we focus on Abu Dhabi this weekend."

Vettel's winning streak has seen him claim victories at the Marina Bay Street Circuit, Japan, Korea and India on Sunday as he triumphed again at the Buddh International Circuit, beating Ferrari's Fernando Alonso by just under 10 seconds.

It means Vettel now has a 13-point cushion over Alonso, who at least managed his best result since winning in Germany in July to keep his own hopes alive.

As you would expect from the fighter that is Alonso, and after his assertion following qualifying on Saturday he was "100 per cent confident" he would win the title, he was again defiant in the face of Vettel's current supremacy.

"This result was good news for us, seeing we could fight Red Bull in the race," said Alonso. "Right now there are 75 points available, and we are 13 behind, but we know we need to improve.

"We are not fast enough, especially on Saturdays, but hopefully we can improve the situation in Abu Dhabi or in the USA."