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Sebastian Vettel has dismissed suggestions that his current struggles at Ferrari are similar to those he endured at his final year at Red Bull in 2014.
Vettel, who entered the 2014 season on the back of four consecutive world championships, found himself being beaten by Daniel Ricciardo, who was competing in his first year at the energy drink squad.
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The German has been involved in several on-track mishaps over the last 12 months, with his latest coming at the British Grand Prix on Sunday, when he crashed into the rear of Max Verstappen.
But Vettel doesn't see any comparisons to what he went through in 2014 to now, once again partnered by a young teammate in Charles Leclerc.
"Firstly, that was a long time ago and secondly, this is very different," Vettel said. "When you’re talking about the frustrations I think it’s maybe here and there the end result that’s missing.
"I think in terms of the races we’ve had, they could have gone the other way as well so I think we need to be fair and not judging one particular lap.
“But it happened and the laps up to that point were quite strong. We started sixth so not by chance found ourselves third at some point. The safety car, you could argue helped, but we managed quite well in the first stint doing something different to other people and making it work.
“I think other races could have been different as well so I’m not too worried but I know that I can have better results come Sunday. I’m looking forward to Germany now.”
Vettel now sits fourth in the drivers' championship, three points ahead of teammate Leclerc and 100 points down on championship leader Lewis Hamilton.
Grand Prix of Belgium
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Replies (2)
Login to replycalle.itw
Posts: 8,527
No, they don't compare. Back in 2014, Vettel still had "it", the car just didn't work for him. And most importantly the engine didn't work for him. Today, the engine works, the car is clearly inferior this season, but in 2018 it worked. Vettel just make a lot of embarrassing mistakes that just shouldn't be for a driver of his calibre. I still rate him highly (yup, still top 5, I still think he'd beat most team mates, though he has dropped down the ranking, but there is a reason Ferrari still want him), but I kinda feel he has lost "it".
f1ski
Posts: 726
Agree he has lost it. Prone to the red mist. Presses when it’s not needed. I think if he were at MB there are 3 drivers who would be faster. Hamilton Leclerc and verstappen. I think it’s just a function of age. Fractionally slower a microscopic level of doubt and then you are 3 tenths down