“Aston Martin have only been embarrassing themselves”: Former Williams driver thinks that the Silverstone outfit are in for a tough end to the 2021 season

Ralf Schumacher recently said in an interview that he thinks Aston Martin are showing no signs of improvement as the season goes on. 

The team, formerly known as Racing Point, have had a woeful 2021 in spite of bringing in a lot of promise when the season started. They sit P7 in the Constructors’ standings with 61 points.

Aerodynamic regulations were massively changed in the build-up to this season. These tweaks have impacted them massively, which has led to dismal performances overall.

Aston Martin would have been much closer to Alpha Tauri in sixth place had Sebastian Vettel hadn’t been disqualified in Hungary due to a fuel sample issue.

Vettel came 2nd in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix earlier this season but his start to life with his new team has not been ideal to say the least.

In the Turkish GP, Vettel’s gamble to switch to slick tires in a wet track did not pay off and saw him throw away potential points finish and end up in P18. Ralf Schumacher was, however, quick to blame the British team’s shoulder.

Also read: “I have no idea what he was thinking”: Sebastian Vettel’s former teammate couldn’t believe what Aston Martin veteran did in Turkey

Aston Martin is the one at fault, says Schumacher

“’I refuse to believe Sebastian has embarrassed himself. It’s more the team that is embarrassing itself at the moment,” the former Williams driver told Sky Sports.

“’The package is just not going in the right direction. It doesn’t seem to be able to develop, although they have a very close co-operation with Mercedes. Of course, the fact they have taken on a lot of new staff could stand in the way.”

It’ll be a close fight, but Seb is ready. 👊

Catch up with #SV5 ahead of the #USGP with our latest #F1 preview, presented by @Cognizant.

— Aston Martin Cognizant F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) October 19, 2021

“’I don’t think we will see Sebastian in the top 10 very often, unless accidents at the start happen like in Budapest,” said the 46-year-old. “They are definitely behind McLaren and Ferrari and even Alpha Tauri are in front. It will be a tough end of the year for Vettel.”

With six races to go in 2021, Aston Martin needs a miraculous recovery to make a jump in the standings. Vettel currently sits 12th in the Championship, followed by his teammate in 13th.