Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber always shared a strenuous relationship in their time as Red Bull teammates, but Malaysia 2013 was, and still is, one of the most talked-about controversial moments of recent F1 times. That is where we first heard the infamous Multi 21 orders from Red Bull.
Vettel was one of the first young stars to emerge from the Red Bull in-house driver academy. Webber, meanwhile, was a recruit from outside of the Red Bull family who blew his chance of a first World Championship in 2010, crashing out of the Korean Grand Prix, and tensions between the pair reached a head at the Sepang International Circuit in 2013.
What happened at the 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix?
With the race nearing its conclusion and a mere 13 laps remaining in the race, Red Bull made the decision to employ team orders with the infamous ‘Multi 21’ command: The driver in car 2 [Webber] must remain ahead of the driver in car 1 [Vettel].
Vettel defied this team order, and with just 13 laps remaining of the race, made his move around the outside of turn 1 to take the lead of the race, ultimately going on to win the race but gaining huge backlash from fans and pundits in the process. His backlash, however, was also met with some in the paddock applauding Vettel for his race stunt, claiming that top-level F1 drivers ought to be ruthless to win, and likening him to his childhood hero, Michael Schumacher.
Ten years ago today, we witnessed one of the most iconic moments in motorsport history: the Multi 21 incident!
At the 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix, the controversial “Multi 21” team order was issued, instructing Vettel to hold position behind Webber.
Defying the order, Vettel… pic.twitter.com/vKSd2nsQpJ
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) March 24, 2023
Webber opened up on the Multi 21 incident in his autobiography in 2015, Aussie Grit: My Formula One Journey
“It wasn’t always beneficial to us to race hard against each other because that was too hard on the tyres and in Malaysia we had had that very discussion beforehand,” Webber wrote.
“I knew within two laps that Seb was going to take matters into his own hands despite the reassurance over the radio that the race was mine. I started defending, but as a result of our respective qualifying runs he had new tyres and I didn’t.
“My attempt in Q2 was too conservative so I did an extra lap: that meant I was on a three-lap- old set while Seb’s were brand-new. Maybe he felt he should be able to use those tyres to the best effect rather than be told to back off?
Webber also added how he felt after the incident: “Whatever his thinking was, when he overtook me I wasn’t so much angry as very sad that the team had reached this sorry state.”
Other incidents between Webber and Vettel
Malaysia wasn’t the first time Vettel and Webber had an on-track feud. The 2010 Turkish Grand Prix was one of the earliest moments of the pair coming together on track. With both drivers fighting for the World Championship that year, Vettel looked for an overtake for the lead of the Turkish Grand Prix, which resulted in the pair crashing together, Vettel retiring from the race and a safety car period.
The 2011 British Grand Prix is another example of the Red Bull drivers disobeying team orders. Webber, who narrowly edged out teammate Vettel to pole position, was later in the race ordered to hold position in P3 behind Vettel, who was P2. Webber refused to accept these team orders and attacked Vettel in the closing stages, but it was to no avail as he finished P3, behind Vettel.
Awkward 😬
Red Bull’s ‘Multi 21’ controversy happened #OnThisDay in 2013#F1 pic.twitter.com/gndhi911cu
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 24, 2020
Brazil in 2012 was dubbed by many as the reason for the Malaysia Multi 21 incident. The pair were locked in a tense title battle which was coming down to the wire. On the opening lap, Webber made a move down the inside of Vettel, forcing him wide and dropping him to seventh, with the potential to impact his chances at the World Championship. Vettel later admitted the Multi 21 incident was, in part, a reaction to the incident in Brazil.
This wasn’t the first civil war in Formula One, and it also hasn’t been the last. Was Vettel wrong to disobey team orders, or was it the move of a World Champion that took him to the status he has today?
