After a complicated goodbye to Ferrari, German driver Sebastian Vettel was looking for a fresh start in the team Aston Martin, Change the air and relaunch your career; however, the debut was just as frustrating as its most recent times in the US formula: Far from the dots and as the target of criticism from fans and former drivers.
The German had a difficult qualification in the Bahrain Grand Prix which opened the 2021 season of the highest category, in his presentation at the front of the green event could not pass the first stage, with the third worst time of the session, just above the two cars of Haas; to make matters worse, he received a five-place penalty for not respecting the yellow flags and started from the last place on the grid.
In the race, the situation did not improve, he had a touch with the act of the Frenchman Esteban Ocon (Alpine) And received a 10-second penalty, to finish in 15th place, on a lap of the leaders and even surpassed by the Williams by George Russell. The worst start imagined by the four-time series champion.
Criticism was not long in coming. One of the strongest was the former British pilot Damon Hill on the F1 Nation podcast: “It’s like watching this Mexican party game, breaking the pot, attacking it constantly; what’s happening to you is hard to watch, something has to click on its constellation Psychological, he needs to see a mystic and get that kind of evil spirit out of him, he must have done something negative to deserve this. “
The result in Bahrain was joined by the nightmare years Vettel experienced at the end of his Ferrari cycle. After being the main title contender for Lewis Hamilton in the 2017 and 2018 seasons, the arrival of young Monegasque Charles Leclerc at the Scuderia in place of his friend Kimi Räikkönen in 2019 seemed to affect his performance.
Of five victories in 2018 it happened to one in the following calendar, of 12 podiums to nine and of being second in the championship with 320 points it fell to the fifth position with 240 units, surpassed even by his teammate, who only he had an experienced campaign and with a Sauber cart.
By 2020, the situation was even more desperate for the four-time monarch with Red Bull between 2010 and 2013, with Ferrari fully focused on Leclerc and with the announcement of Carlos Sainz’s signing to replace in 2021, the German had the his worst year in F1 since his time as a rookie, with just one podium (third in Turkey) and 33 points to place -13º in the championship.
That’s why he’s also an ex-pilot David Coulthard gave a hypothesis about the German’s present: “I wonder if he’s part of a branded build, but not for Aston Martin, but for Lance Stroll (his new teammate). If he can beat Vettel, he can to say that he can also be a champion in the future, I do not say whether he is or not, but there are still doubts about where he is in the hierarchical order.If he does to ‘Seb’ what Charles did to him (Leclerc ), I don’t know how the season can end, ”the Scot stated on the podcast On the Marbles.
For several weeks it was speculated that Sebastian would take a sabbatical year or even retire from the series at the age of 33, until millionaire Lawrence Stroll recruited him for the new Racing Point project, a squad that was fourth in the constructors ’table in 2020, with 64 points more than Ferrari, but that is far from having an act capable of fighting for victories in every race.
“The team isn’t a winner yet, it’s growing, he knows it, he’ll understand, but how will it help him in terms of motivation and timing? I’m nervous,” his former teammate told Red Bull, Mark Webber also on the podcast On the Marbles.
Vettel’s fall coincided with the Scuderia’s descent, but it takes on a new dimension with the bad debut in a garage where he should feel more comfortable. “How many bullets are left in the room? I don’t know, I think he will enjoy the environment, there is no doubt, not being in Maranello and yes in an English atmosphere, he has always had a good time, I know, in what it won’t translate automatically it’s in performance, you’ll like it more, but I don’t know how this will turn out on the timer and that’s what F1 is all about, ”the Australian abounded.
The one in Heppenheim took the highest category by storm. In his debut with Net in the 2007 United States Grand Prix he was eighth and to close this campaign he was fourth with Red Bull in China, even less than a year later and still in the second team of Red Bull, he won in Italy, to make his quality clear.
Former driver Gerhard Berger was the garage manager with whom he shared that success more than a decade ago and he also did an analysis of what happens to the German. “Sebastian is a four-time champion, he’s one of the outstanding drivers, no doubt, but he never reacts well under pressure, we remember when Daniel (Ricciardo) came to Red Bull, he was very strong and he was a threat to ‘Seb’, it’s hard for him to fight that. “
The Austrian dates back to 2014, when Webber retired after the German’s fourth crown and Red Bull promoted Ricciardo, who had also shone with Toro Rosso. In this season, the first of the hybrid era, hegemony ceased to be part of the team of energy drinks to begin the era of Mercedes; however, Daniel had 71 points more than his teammate, who goes from monarch to fifth place in the table.
In 2015, ‘Seb’ went to Ferrari, to be Räikkönen’s teammate, “in Ferrari it was the same (with Leclerc), now I think he’s not loose, relaxed, maybe he wants to prove things, but right now it’s not possible because the act isn’t good enough, or he’s not in good shape, when you’re in this situation you have to sit back, take a step back and calm down and success will come back, ”Berger deepened in the podcast In the Fast Lane.
“Somehow, it hasn’t worked for him, he starts making mistakes, people question him, and here he goes slowly, more and more pressure and he doesn’t like it. It’s an awkward situation when you’re on a team and your teammate is faster (Stroll was tenth in Bahrain) and obviously maybe they dedicate more time to him, but it’s something you have to deal with, ”concluded the 10-race winner in the series.
However, the motivation for Aston Martin’s is that he is barely running a race of the 23 scheduled in the 2021 calendar, he has a couple of weeks to better understand his new act and draw conclusions from what has happened in the preseason and at the start of the campaign; with his experience he has the ability to turn the situation around.
“He feels this punishment, and the blows he has received worry him, I’m afraid this will get worse, he has to let go of all the bad, negative feelings, when he does, he has all the capacity in the world, he can run to the front alongside Lewis and Max (Verstappen), ”Damon Hill advanced. It is Vettel’s job to claim his rightful place in the elite of motorsport.