F1 legend Sebastian Vettel produced a fantastic performance to smash through the magical 3-hour time barrier at the 2026 London Marathon on Sunday.
The 38-year-old four-time world champion spends much of his life these days campaigning for worthy causes, and on Sunday he raised money for two with a brilliant performance in hot conditions in the English capital.
Vettel, who claimed four world titles during an epic run at Red Bull, reached the end of the 26.2miles in a sensational time of 2:59:08 – just inside three hours and a terrific effort for an amateur.
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Sebastian Vettel’s incredible race
Seb, wearing number 45294 and racing for the Brain & Spine Foundation and the Grand Prix Trust, began his race at 09:35 local time and set a metronomic pace throughout the gruelling distance.
German great Vettel, who retired from F1 racing in 2022, was remarkably consistent throughout the race, reaching half distance in 1:29:18, on target to break three hours but still needing a mighty effort in the second half to keep up that pace.
The former Red Bull, Ferrari and Aston Martin superstar did just that, completing the second 13.1 miles in 1:29:50 to break through that 3-hour time barrier.
It was a record-breaking day all round in London, with Kenyan megastar Sabastian Sawe becoming the first athlete ever to break 2 hours for the marathon in normal race conditions. He clocked a mind-boggling 1:59:30.
Vettel time splits
Vettel’s time splits for the race looked like this:
Split
Time of Day
Split Time
Cumulative Time
5K
09:55:47
20:35
00:20:35
10K
10:17:01
21:13
00:41:48
15K
10:38:41
21:41
01:03:29
20K
10:59:51
21:10
01:24:39
Half
11:04:31
04:39
01:29:18
25K
11:21:00
16:30
01:45:48
30K
11:42:27
21:26
02:07:14
35K
12:03:36
21:10
02:28:24
40K
12:25:09
21:32
02:49:56
Finish
12:34:21
09:12
02:59:08
F1 great excited to achieve ‘ambitious goal’
It was a very happy Vettel who spoke with media after the finish line, and he said he’d loved the London Marathon experience.
“It felt very long but it’s been my first time, I didn’t know what to expect so it’s been amazing how many people there were next to the course and how happy everyone is. So it’s a really great experience and I’m very excited still and very happy that I finished.”
Vettel said he had set himself that three-hour goal before the start, and was delighted to smash through that magical barrier.
“I always wanted to do a marathon. obviously always kept fit, did a lot of running, cycling – so I thought it’s about time. I set myself an ambitious goal which I managed to achieve. I wanted to be just below three hours, which I did.
“So I’m very happy with that. But I think even more so, happy that I finished, and having lived the experience I can only recommend it.”
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