In Formula One, the rumors never stop and this time, Red Bull’s driving manager Dr. Helmut Marko has added fuel to the fire. He had advised four-time champion Sebastian Vettel to quit Ferrari if he (Vettel) wants to regain his form from the yesteryear.
What did Dr. Marko advise Vettel?
Having failed to win a championship since his move to Ferrari in 2015, Vettel has seen a tremendous slump in his form. Often criticized for being unable to end Ferrari’s 12-year Championship draught, the German has also had a string of bad luck chasing him consistently since he joined the Prancing Horse.
Speaking to the Auto Bild, Marko said,” You make mistakes when you are no longer yourself. It happens in your subconscious mind. Sebastian should actually be in a different environment. In other words: with a different team. I don’t see any possibility for that before 2020.”
He also reminisced about Vettel…
Dr. Marko, obviously also knew Vettel well from his time racing with Red Bull. Under his tutelage, the 32-year-old won four World Championships and was easily one of the best racers in the modern history of the sport.
Marko added,” At Red Bull, he hardly made any mistakes. You do not forget how to drive.”
“So why does this stuff keep happening to him over and over again at Ferrari?”
Marko was of course referring to not only Vettel’s inability to win races consistently but also to even finish them. In Silverstone last week, he crashed into Max Verstappen which caused him to finish 16th on the final list. Overall, he is fourth on the table in the Driver’s Championship, eons behind the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Valterri Bottas who are first and second respectively.
“Vettel is overrated”: Baldisseri
The Italian media and the public are opposed to Vettel, and that sentiment is evident in the words of former Ferrari engineer Luca Baldisseri. He said,” I think Vettel is an overrated driver and not [Michael] Schumacher’s heir, he has made so many mistakes and must rediscover himself.”
“But he is still a driver who has won four titles. If Leclerc keeps maturing and becomes the top driver, he will still need a team-mate who can support and help him. I believe from that point of view that Vettel has the experience to be a high level team-mate.”
Hamilton still backs Vettel…
Five-time World Champion and the defending champion, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton however still believes in Vettel. After the British Grand Prix, in which Vettel suffered the unfortunate clash with Verstappen, Hamilton publicly backed his foe and declared, “I absolutely believe he will rebound. You look at the greats playing tennis and he is one of those. He’s had a difficult race but he’s a four time world champion. He will recover, he will redeem himself if he feels he needs to and he will come back stronger in the next race. That’s what great athletes do.”
I suppose only time will tell what Vettel does next, be it a retirement as rumored by many outlets or a move away to a low-pressure movement as it seems imminent.
