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Mansell Mania returns: F1 legend drives iconic cars at Goodwood – gallery
Nigel Mansell rolled back the years driving his iconic F1 cars at the 2022 Goodwood Festival of Speed – see the best images in our gallery
Vettel drives his Mansell Williams FW14B at British GP with green fuel
F1
- Last updated: July 4th 2022
Sebastian Vettel gave fans a deafening display in Nigel Mansell's 1992 British Grand Prix-winning Williams FW14B ahead of the race at Silverstone on Sunday
Vettel demonstrating his 1992 British GP-winning Williams with sustainable fuel
Florent Gooden / DPPI
Sebastian Vettel might have rolled back the years by demonstrating his 1992 championship-winning Williams of Nigel Mansell at Silverstone this weekend, but he did so responsibly: powered by a carbon-neutral fuel.
Vettel bought the iconic FW14B two years ago and he drove it for the first time on Sunday ahead of the British Grand Prix, thirty years since Mansell won the race in the very same car.
In front of 142,000 spectators in packed grandstands, the FW14B’s screaming Renault V10 echoed around Silverstone as it did in the era of Mansell-mania.
Vettel at Silverstone in 2022 (left) and Mansell in the same car at the 1992 British GP
The moustachioed world champion was in attendance, watching from the pitwall and embracing Vettel when he came to a halt on the startline and stepped out of the car.
Vettel, who was also celebrating his 35th birthday, lifted off his Mansell tribute helmet to reveal a big grin.
“It felt like time travel,” he said. “I got to feel how Nigel must have felt a little bit 30 years ago. I think these cars are incredible. The sound inside is incredible… A perfect birthday present.”
Vettel will drive his Williams FW14/B at Goodwood
Clive Mason/Getty Images
Vettel incorporated Mansell’s famous Union Jack livery and signature on his tribute helmet
Clive Rose/Getty Images
When 1992 meets 2022: Mansell and Vettel with the FW14B
Dan Mullan/F1 via Getty Images
At a pre-race press conference before the run, Vettel revealed how the idea came about and why the car holds a sentimental value to him.
“It was my idea,” he said. “The red five [on the nose] is the car from ’92 and that means a bit more than just the car itself.
“I won my first championship with [a] red five [on the 2010 Red Bull], I was number five throughout karting and I’m number five now – so there’s a link there.
“The early ’90s are kind of my first memories of Formula 1 and it was my idea [because it’s] exactly 30 years after he won the championship, but it also won the British GP 30 years ago.”
In a video for Sky Sports, he added: “I was thinking, ‘Put it on display 30 years after Nigel won’. It’s the exact same car.”
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Vettel is an aficionado of racing history, but has also been vocal over the need to cut CO2 emissions and tackle climate change.
He combined the two passions on Sunday by running the Williams on carbon-neutral fuel, which is thought to be created synthetically by combining carbon and hydrogen using renewable energy.
Vettel’s blue Mansell-esque overalls include the familiar black strip across the chest, but Williams’ 1992 sponsor Labatt’s is replaced with the “Race without trace” slogan.
“We have to do it in a responsible way,” he added. “So we’re using carbon neutral fuels to demonstrate that we can still hang on to our history and culture in motorsport.
“It’s no different to how the car was thirty years ago, it will sound exactly the same and it will drive the same way.
“I am expecting to have a lot of fun and I hope people can share that because I think it’s an incredible car, the history and the way it sounds.”
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