He got a 20-second penalty for hitting Sebastian Vettel, then he called him a ‘cry baby’

Follow us on Google Discover

Formula 1 is an intense sport and every now and then it throws up a unique challenge. Sebastian Vettel encountered this multiple times during his title winning campaigns.

The most chaotic of which, was his third drivers’ championship in 2012, as he wound up recovering from a 40-point deficit to win the title by just three points over Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso.

Vettel faced setbacks in Malaysia, Valencia and Monza, and still found a way to fight until the end. A four-race winning streak in Asia massively helped his cause.

The Red Bull car wasn’t particularly the fastest, with the unreliable but quick McLaren holding a slight advantage over the rest at most events, but at one race in particular, everything was turned on its head.

The Malaysian Grand Prix was an exciting affair, with Sergio Perez earning his first podium for Sauber and Alonso claiming a first victory of the year in changeable conditions.

David Coulthard played a pivotal role in Vettel’s career, but he had comfortably established himself as the number one driver by 2012. In Malaysia, he endured his worst race of the season, which could have thrown everything into disrepute.

READ MORE: Ranking every driver to race for Red Bull during their 20 years in F1 including Max Verstappen vs Sebastian Vettel

Narain Karthikeyan called Sebastian Vettel a ‘cry baby’ after Malaysian Grand Prix clash

Narain Karthikeyan made 46 Formula 1 starts between 2005 and 2012, and is India’s only point-scorer in the sport’s history.

He drove for Jordan in their final season before becoming Midland, and later on the Hispania Racing Team in their last campaign.

Karthikeyan once needed a £30 hotel to survive before signing his first contract in the big leagues. His best finish was fourth at the tyre-impacted 2005 United States Grand Prix.

At the 2012 Malaysian Grand Prix, he found himself on the wrong end of four-time champion Vettel after a difficult race.

After being outqualified by teammate Mark Webber on Saturday, Vettel found himself struggling on Sunday in the wet conditions.

While attempting to overtake Karthikeyan, the two made contact, handing the German a puncture and damaging his hopes of scoring points.

The Indian driver was handed a 20-second penalty for his part in the matter, while Vettel failed to score points in 11th.

“For a world champion to say things like that is really shameful. It is really unprofessional,” Karthikeyan told The Times of India, via RaceFans.

“For a driver who has achieved so much to take out his frustrations on me just because he is having a difficult year is really sad. One does not expect a professional sportsman to be such a cry baby.”

What happened to Narain Karthikeyan after the 2012 Formula 1 season?

Karthikeyan went on to race in multiple categories after leaving Formula 1 in 2012, with his permanent single-seater home becoming Super Formula.

He struggled for success there too, with a best finish of third (twice secured) in six seasons, before he concluded his time there in 2018.

In 2019, he took up Super GT, finishing fifth in the standings, and in 2021 he took part in a full season of the Asian Le Mans Series, finishing fifth overall in the LMP2 class.

Four years on, and that’s the last recorded racing action completed by the 48-year-old. He never received another opportunity at the highest level, even in a test capacity, after 2012.