When Sebastian Vettel Bought Pillows for the Entire Aston Martin Team, Bernie Collins Recalls

Sebastian Vettel, once a fierce competitor in F1 with four consecutive World Championships to his name, gained a wave of new fans later in his career by revealing a kinder and more compassionate side to his character. In one such instance, Vettel’s small but heartwarming gesture won over the hearts of everyone on his team.

Bernie Collins revealed how Vettel went ahead and bought pillows for everyone working at Aston Martin because the ones at their hotel in Japan were very uncomfortable. “…the little rice pillows they use in that part of the world. They’re very small and uncomfortable by our standards,” the ex-strategist, who worked with Vettel, revealed in her book ‘How to Win a Grand Prix’.

“One of our [Aston Martin] drivers went out and bought everyone a roll-up travel pillow. That was really good – and typical of Seb. I’ve kept my pillow and bring it with me each time I go to Japan,” she added.

Vettel has frequently emphasized the importance of kindness towards those around him, and his actions spoke volumes in this regard. During his time with Aston Martin, he became a vocal advocate for several social issues he felt were impacting society.

[Thread] Sebastian Vettel and his kindness to his (or F1) fans

P. S. I don’t do this for likes. I just want to remind you all that he doesn’t deserve any hate, both for his success and his failure.

— Syifa (@sebbeeprix) May 26, 2021

He raised awareness about climate change and the urgent need to protect the environment, while also partnering with Lewis Hamilton to support the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement and LGBTQ+ rights.

Sebastian Vettel shares his support to @LewisHamilton: “it’s not only in recent years it’s what he and his family gone through their entire lives…
kindness matter, people matter and we don’t have a room for such language/behaviour in our sport”#WeStandWithLewisHamilton pic.twitter.com/xeYjlBUFN6

— Sebastian Vettel Updates (@ocsebvettel) June 30, 2022

Aston Martin was Vettel’s final team in F1. He joined the Silverstone-based outfit in 2021 after spending seven seasons with Ferrari and retired from the sport after the 2022 campaign.