Sebastian Vettel was just one of five German drivers taking part in the official Thursday press conference ahead of this weekend’s German Grand Prix, however the Red Bull Racing star has the most logical chance of actually taking the win here in front of his home fans come Sunday afternoon.

Here he answers the press on questions relating to his chances here this weekend, his win at Silverstone three weeks ago and what his future holds....

So you are going to be fast here Sebastian?

We do have some small bits but nothing major. I think we had a very big update at Silverstone which worked perfectly fine, so we should have a very competitive car here again. Always the Nürburgring is very famous for its conditions, so no matter how good is the prediction you never know what is going to happen. The best thing in the morning is to wake up and have a look, so we will see. There are possibly some showers this weekend but I think we do have a competitive car in dry and wet conditions, so it will be very exciting. Obviously for all of us it is our home grand prix, so we are all very excited. The time between Silverstone and here I was mainly at home preparing. It is quite nice. On the one hand you miss the testing because the part you enjoy the most is the driving but on the other hand it is also good to come back down and use the time to train a little bit more intensively as when you are always busy, always on the road, it is hard to really follow a programme. It is more or less about stabilizing where you are. But if you have a bit of time off you can use it. Other than that I turned 22 last week. That’s it.

Was that a big celebration?
Not big. I don’t know if you celebrate when you turn 22. It was very quiet. We had some little BBQ with the family but nothing special.

Sebastian, winner of the last race and the only other winner this year apart from Jenson (Button). Adrian Newey thinks it will ebb and flow. Sometimes it will be them and sometimes it will be you. What are your feelings about that?
I hope that in the future that it will be only us. But I think it will be a hard fight. As Nick said in the beginning of this question round it is very unique this year to see that as soon as someone brings an update, whoever it is, is able to make quite a big step. We brought quite a big update at the last race and it seemed to work. I think on top of that we had a perfect weekend. Maybe Brawn GP was struggling a little bit here and there. In the end it is all about getting your things and getting the job done. I think you have to focus for every single race. Each circuit is different in a way, so in general I think the most important thing is to have a good, fast car which we do, but they also have (one), so it will be a close fight to the end of the season. But as I said you have to keep working, bringing the bits even if it is just a couple of bits you put on the car. They are helping. Everyone is developing like crazy and trying to improve. Both teams are in a very strong position. We have a good car but in the end little things can make the difference.

Sebastian, how do you feel this year coming to Germany as a star?
I don’t consider myself as a star. It is always nice to come here. It is very special for all five of us to take part in the German Grand Prix being German you know, it is our home grand prix. It is similar for an Englishman to drive around Silverstone, I think as it is special. I have had a lot of races here at the Nürburgring in all different categories, Formula BMW, Formula Three and Formula Renault World Series. I like the circuit and it will be my first time around here in an F1 car, so I am definitely looking forward.

There’s this big legend about the Nordschleife here. I want to know your experience driving around it with any car and if you have a wish to one day have a Formula One race here, even if the safety standards would be a little bit different?
As soon as I got my licence, I used the opportunity (to come here) and I did a lap with a road car. I was completely lost but followed a friend and around half a lap I completely lost the brakes and I was lucky not to crash, so I had totally underestimated the performance of normal road car brakes. Then a couple of years later I had another opportunity with a friend who lives just down the road here close to Nürburgring and the Nordschleife. He has an old BMW 3-series, not very powerful but modified, so proper tyres and the chassis tuned a little bit. When there were normal tourists around the track, then it was quite big fun to chase them in this little car and even though you have no power on the straights, you were much faster in the corners. It was fun. I think I had five or six laps. First of all you are surprised how many corners there are and how long one lap really is but I think then you quite quickly get into the rhythm and you kind of recognise the corners more and more, so after five laps you roughly know where you are but it has been a few days and I think I have forgotten most of it but it would be nice to come back and do a couple of laps.

What is your opinion about the possibility of having a Bulgarian Grand Prix in the next two or three years because tomorrow there will be negotiations with Mr Ecclestone?
I think it’s all been said. As long as the circuit is nice, this is what we all enjoy most and if the spectators are great, if the atmosphere is great, so if there are plenty of Bulgarian race fans, it would be nice to go there.

I guess that a third win this season might make a nice birthday present for you and if it continues to be quite cold that could make life more difficult for Jenson. What are your feelings on those two things?
First of all, I think Germany is usually hotter than in the UK. I think this place is quite special, so we should be used to the heat, much more than an Englishman! No, as I said, it will be a very, very close fight until the end of the season and obviously they are in a better position than we are if you look at the championship placings. We will try everything we can. We will try at every single race, our target is to win, that’s why we are here, to beat not just the Brawns but to beat everyone, because in the end, if you want to win, you have to beat every single person. A lot of things can happen quickly in sports. You never know what is going to happen, basically. Maybe they didn’t have such a good race in Silverstone, we had a great race and all of a sudden people are talking more about a closer fight and so on. If it is the other way around here again, then people will have a different opinion and if it continues to go in our direction it will be closer. There is still a long, long way. Right now we are more of less at half time, halfway through the season. Every single race is important. We didn’t always do the best job possible in the first couple of races but we are still in a very strong position and there’s a long way to go. We are here to fight.

As it is your home Grand Prix, do you feel that it is an advantage, do you have more things to do as Jenson lost his home Grand Prix last race?
I don’t see this as a disadvantage. I think it’s always nice to come here, as I said, for all of us. It’s nice to see a lot of people mainly cheering for us. If anything it gives you more power and maybe that extra little you need but in the end, of course there are more people and maybe more attention but the thing that matters most is the racing, so you have to sometimes forget everyone and everything around you and just focus on what really matters. It might be a bit more difficult to keep the focus but that’s the most important thing, the key I think, to focus on racing. In the end, you can get ten points, you can get ten points in England, Silverstone, or you could get ten points in Australia. It doesn’t give you more points if you win here than anywhere else. Of course it’s nicer to win your home Grand Prix but it’s a long, long way and the race is on Sunday. First of all there is Friday, tomorrow, to prepare and then the qualifying. It’s always a long way.

What about your future? Do you know where you will be next year, in which team and are you already working on that?
I know. I’ve said it already. I’ve said I know. I can also now say…. whatever you want to hear. I think everybody knows about my situation next year. I’m very happy. We are very, very strong this year which may be a surprise for some people but I think maybe the last couple of years weren’t the best for the team but I’m very pleased that at the moment that I arrived we had the right car to finally be where I think we deserved to be.