Sebastian Vettel said he’s happier at Aston Martin right now but also cherishes the moments he spent during his Ferrari stint.
Vettel’s run with Ferrari didn’t quite go to plan. The 4-time World Champion signed for the Italian team in 2015, and their primary aim was to make him Ferrari’s first World Champion since Kimi Raikkonen in 2007.
He won 14 races with the Scuderia but failed to achieve the ultimate goal. During his time in Maranello, the German wasn’t able to seriously threaten the Mercedes/Lewis Hamilton dominance.
After 6 years in Italy, Vettel joined the newly branded Aston Martin team in 2021. He hasn’t been able to challenge for podiums with his new team but the 34 year old says he’s in a much happier place now.
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“Well, my departure from Ferrari was maybe a bit strange,” Vettel said. “In that respect, I’m happier now than before.
However, the former Red Bull driver says he would never want to miss out on driving with Ferrari. He admits that he rues not winning the World Title with them, but he cherishes the years spent with the Italian team.
“But I never want to miss my time at Ferrari, even if my planned big successes failed to materialize there. We wanted to become World Champions.”
Sebastian Vettel is sure that Ferrari will be World Champions soon
Vettel had a very tough final year with Ferrari. He managed to finish in the podium places just once during the course of the year. The Scuderia finished 6th in the Constructor’s Championship; their worst performance since 1980 when they finished 10th.
Their former driver Vettel thinks that the Maranello outfit have been living under the shadows of Red Bull and Mercedes for far too long. However, he’s sure that it’s only a matter of time before the tifosi get to celebrate again.
“Unfortunately, they continue to be so blatantly superior.” he said. “But at some point, Ferrari will win again and become World Champion.”
Ferrari did perform much better in 2021. With a new driver pairing of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc, the team from Modena finished 3rd in the Standings after a string of consistent performances all season long.
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Vettel hoping for a better mechanical package in 2022
Sebastian Vettel also looked back on a tricky first season with his new team, Aston Martin. The Silverstone based team hasn’t lived up to expectations and Vettel struggled to get out of the midfield for the majority of this season.
“We had a difficult year in general with the new regulations and the modified, indeed cut, underbody.” he continued.
“We didn’t have as steep an angle of attack at the rear as Red Bull, for example. Mercedes also suffered from the underbody. In 2020, they were still 1.5 seconds ahead.
“Our car was not that efficient. That is a weak point. Unfortunately, we frequently suffered from too much drag.”
“We now have to wait a year and see if everything develops positively – in all regions of the current standings. In short, whether everyone will really move closer together and whether there will be more overtaking.” Vettel concluded.
