Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo sign up for 2015 Race of Champions
London's Olympic Stadium to stage event in November
Thursday 13 August 2015 12:05, UK
Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo have signed up for the 2015 Race of Champions in London.
The annual event is returning to the UK for the first time since 2008 and will be staged at the Olympic Stadium on November 20 and 21 – the week before the F1 season finale in Abu Dhabi.
The Race of Champions pits drivers against each other head-to-head in identical machinery and was first run in 1988, having initially bene conceived as the ultimate shoot-out between the best international rally stars.
In its current format, introduced in 2004, the event is staged within a sporting stadium - 2014 being the exception - and the move from gravel to tarmac has seen F1, sportscar and touring car drivers become the majority of participants.
Split over two days, the first day sees the drivers compete for their nations in teams of two in a best of three races format. A group stage is followed by knockout rounds, ensuring each pair gets more than one outing. The German team of Vettel and Michael Schumacher won the Nations Cup six successive times between 2007 and 2012.
Ricciardo will pair up with motorcycle legend Mick Doohan who won five consecutive 500cc World Championships for his debut with Team Australia this year. Vettel’s partner is yet to be announced.
Day two sees the drivers compete for individual honours with the racing following the same format of a round robin followed by a knockout competition.
Of the current F1 drivers, Romain Grosjean is the only one to be crowned Champion of Champions after winning the 2012 event in Bangkok.
