"I don't apologize for winning": When Sebastian Vettel gave an iconic reply to his haters

Former Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel previously claimed that he would not "apologize for winning" after his controversial actions during the iconic 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix. The German driver was known for his ruthless efficiency on the track and did not give an inch of tarmac to his competitors throughout his decorated career in the sport.

During the 2013 Malaysian GP at the Sepang International Circuit, the then-three-time world champion disobeyed the team's orders to not attack his teammate Mark Webber for the lead and instructed him to tuck behind the Aussie.

However, the young reigning world champion decided to act against the team's order and fought in a brilliant wheel-to-wheel battle with Webber for multiple laps before inheriting the race lead and sailing to another race win.

Speaking with RacingNews365 after the event, Vettel reflected on his actions during the race and gave a straightforward and iconic reply to the critics and said:

"I think as I said there's not much more to add than what happened I told the team straight after, and I apologized for putting myself above the team which I didn't mean to do.

"But there's not much really more to say really I don't apologize for winning. I think that's why people employ me in the first place."

Mark Webber reveals his feelings regarding the iconic "Multi-21" incident with Sebastian Vettel

Former Red Bull driver Mark Webber wasn't overly pleased with his teammate Sebastian Vettel acting against the team's iconic "Multi-21" order and taking matters into his own hands.

While appearing on the Formula for Success podcast, the Aussie spoke about his true feelings regarding the incident and said:

“Seb apologized on the podium, which is easy to do, isn’t it? So I think at the time, his instinct, helmet on, we’ve all been there where sometimes the helmet, when it’s on, you just go into… you are in fighter mode, and you want to get the bloody job done for yourself."

Mark Webber further revealed that he had been protecting Sebastian Vettel from the attack from Mercedes's Lewis Hamilton in the early stages, adding:

"I gave the early stops to Seb to protect it, ironically, against Lewis [Hamilton], because Seb was under pressure from him. And once we got ourselves away from the stops and sort of unlocked ourselves away from being undercut from those guys, the race could settle down.

“And that’s where we had the disagreement, because before the race, it was set that that’s how we were going to finish the Grand Prix. I mean, of course, Seb did his own thing and went against what the team thought.”

Sebastian Vettel went on to dominate the 2013 season as he won 13 out of the 19 races and claimed his fourth straight and final world championship in F1 while Webber retired at the end of the year without a win to his name in 2013.