In 2009 the FIA, F1's governing body, banned traction control in order to keep the competition alive. Now some people, like Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton, and former F1 team owner Giancarlo Minardi, are accusing Red Bull of fitting a traction control device of some sort to that car that has evaded officials during inspection. Of course, just because the inspectors haven't found it doesn't mean it doesn't exist, motorsport history is full of clever cheats like this.
Vettel managed to beat everyone around the circuit by two seconds in Singapore, and the theories abound.
Lewis Hamilton: "If you look at the onboard [camera], he is on the power full throttle at least 20 metres before anyone else, which is a huge advantage. The last time I was able to put the pedal down that quick was back in 2007 or 2008, when we had traction control."
Fernando Alonso: "This different engine noise has been there all year in the Red Bull. It's true it's maybe more obvious in Singapore because it is a street circuit and people can watch in the corners but if you go to winter test, already in Barcelona, we were in corners following the test session and the Red Bull was a different sound."
Minardi echoed Alonso's comments regarding the sound of the car, while Vettel laughed off teh accusations, referring to them as a "compliment." He also claimed that it's the engine control software that is giving the car the advantage.
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