Staff Reporter,
Photo Credit: @AstonMartinF1.
Sebastian Vettel says he is “at peace” with his poor season at Ferrari last year and “excited” about starting work with his new Aston Martin team.
The four-time champion said he had “high expectations” as the Aston Martin name returns to F1 for the first time in 60 years.
Vettel said: “I am not happy with last year in terms of performance – partly my performance – but I accepted it.
“There are things that didn’t go well, but I am looking forward to this year.”
Vettel, who learned he was to be dropped by Ferrari before last season even started, said Mercedes “had to be the favourites” for 2021 and that Aston Martin – formerly known as Racing Point – had an “unofficial, or maybe official target” of finishing third.
They were pipped by McLaren to that position at the final race of last season.
Vettel, winner of 53 grands prix and one of the most successful F1 drivers of all time, said he had nothing to prove after his disappointing final two years at Ferrari, in which he was out-performed by team-mate Charles Leclerc.
And he said he was confident he was still capable of winning another championship if he has a car capable of it.
“It’s not a secret that at stages last year I was not at my happiest,” Vettel said. “This year I am very much looking forwards.
“Things are a bit different but from what I have seen the people are very capable and talented and it is the first time for the last few years that they are getting the oxygen to breathe.”
That remark is a reference to the increased budget the team has been afforded under owner Lawrence Stroll, as well as the fact that a budget cap has been introduced into F1 for the first time this season.