Vettel needs time to himself after 'exhausting' year

  • Published on 27 Nov 2018 10:13
  • comments 3
  • By: Fergal Walsh

Sebastian Vettel says that he needs some time to himself throughout the winter to regroup after a tough season. The German lost out in the world championship fight to MercedesLewis Hamilton, who picked up his fifth world title in Mexico.

Vettel saw his challenge slipway in the second half of the year after getting involved in a number of on-track mishaps. Ferrari lost out in the development race to Mercedes, as it had to take off a number of upgrades that failed to improve the car's pace.

"Looking back I haven't been at the top of my game," Vettel admitted. "I can be better than I was at times this year. I think I need some time for myself. It has been a quite difficult and exhausting year for me. I don't think I ever any problems raising my hand if I made a mistake.

"I don't think I need to change things upside down but certainly I can adjust and get stronger. Having said that though, I think we also had a lot of races where we got everything out of the car and the package and I felt that I did everything I could."

Vettel highlighted the issues surrounding upgrades to the car, and also stated that the death of Ferrari's CEO Sergio Marchionne had an impact at the camp, which translated over to the on-track form.

"We lost our path a little bit halfway through the year. Things didn't come together so obviously we did a step back towards the end of the year which enabled us to be more competitive again but I think we've understood what went wrong," he said.

"We had a lot of lessons, it was a tough year in general. I think the team is strong and the team has potential. The passing of our chairman, Mr Marchionne obviously had an impact and was tough so I think it's up to us to look into every single detail and make sure we come out as a stronger group, enabling us to build a stronger package for next year and for the future."

Replies (3)

Login to reply
  • Hush little Vettel, dont say a word
    Calle's gonna buy you an alpacka herd
    And if that Ferrari wont do well
    Alpacka's gonna hunt you down to hell

    • + 0
    • Nov 27 2018 - 17:43
    • Just being a bit facetious. I'll probably just settle for moderately pissed. Seriously wouldnt mind having an alpacka herd though. Feeding would be ridiculously expensive, but Im sure there'd be some kind of use for them.

      • + 0
      • Nov 27 2018 - 17:47
    • RogerF1

      Posts: 501

      The fleece makes nice warm knitted jackets for those cold Scandinavian winters, get your knitting kit ready for the off season. ;-)

      • + 0
      • Nov 27 2018 - 23:08

BE Grand Prix of Belgium

Local time 

BEGrand Prix of Belgium

Local time 

World Championship standings 2024

Show full world champion standings

Test calendar

See full test schedule

Related news

Give your opinion!

Will Bottas challenge Hamilton for the world championship in 2020?

Formula 1 Calendar - 2024

Date
Grand Prix
Circuit
-
Bahrain
29 - Mar 2
Bahrain
7 - Mar 9
Saudi Arabia
22 - Mar 24
Australia
5 - Apr 7
Japan
19 - Apr 21
China
3 - May 5
United States of America
17 - May 19
Italy
24 - May 26
Monaco
7 - Jun 9
Canada
21 - Jun 23
Spain
28 - Jun 30
Austria
5 - Jul 7
United Kingdom
19 - Jul 21
Hungary
26 - Jul 28
Belgium
23 - Aug 25
Netherlands
30 - Sep 1
Italy
13 - Sep 15
Azerbaijan
20 - Sep 22
Singapore
18 - Oct 20
United States of America
25 - Oct 27
Mexico
1 - Nov 3
Brazil
22 - Nov 24
United States of America
29 - Dec 1
Qatar
6 - Dec 8
United Arab Emirates
See full schedule

Formula 1 Calendar - 2024

Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
29 - Mar 2
7 - Mar 9
Saudi Arabia Jeddah Street Circuit
22 - Mar 24
Australia Albert Park
5 - Apr 7
19 - Apr 21
3 - May 5
United States of America Miami International Autodrome
17 - May 19
24 - May 26
Monaco Monte Carlo
7 - Jun 9
21 - Jun 23
28 - Jun 30
Austria Red Bull Ring
5 - Jul 7
United Kingdom Silverstone
19 - Jul 21
Hungary Hungaroring
26 - Jul 28
23 - Aug 25
Netherlands Circuit Zandvoort
30 - Sep 1
Italy Monza
13 - Sep 15
Azerbaijan Baku City Circuit
20 - Sep 22
18 - Oct 20
United States of America Circuit of the Americas
25 - Oct 27
1 - Nov 3
Brazil Interlagos
22 - Nov 24
United States of America Las Vegas Street Circuit
29 - Dec 1
6 - Dec 8
United Arab Emirates Yas Marina Circuit
See full schedule

Driver profile

  • Team Mercedes
  • Points 3,162
  • Podiums 127
  • Grand Prix 187
  • Country GB
  • Date of b. Jan 7 1985 (39)
  • Place of b. Tewin, GB
  • Weight 68 kg
  • Length 1.74 m
Show full profile

Team profile

Show full profile
show sidebar