Schumacher: Vettel will be ‘back to his old self’

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Ralf Schumacher believes that, at Aston Martin, Sebastian Vettel will recapture the form that saw him win four World Championships.

Vettel has been a shadow of his former self in recent times at Ferrari. In the last two seasons, he has made a number of mistakes and has constantly been beaten by team-mate Charles Leclerc on both Saturdays and Sundays.

This had led to many people believing that the German is past his best, but Schumacher is confident that Vettel will prove that not to be the case with his new team next season.

“I am firmly convinced that we will see Sebastian at Racing Point back to his old self,” he said in his latest column for Sky Germany.

“There are many reasons for this. The car suits him much better. In terms of performance, it is generally faster than the Ferrari and is also much easier to drive. In addition, the balance is much better for Sebastian.

“By all means, they wanted him and they invested a lot of money in him. That’s, of course, a good feeling to be wanted, especially in his current situation at Ferrari.

“A small, compact team with all the possibilities and with the support of Mercedes. This will be an atmosphere that he likes from the very beginning and comparable to Red Bull in the past.

“I’m sure his time is not over yet. He wants to and will show everyone again.”

Sebastian Vettel
Nick Heidfeld hopes Sebastian Vettel protected himself from Lance Stroll in his contract.

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2020 has been Vettel’s worst season at Ferrari since he joined the team in 2015. He has rarely been able to get close to Leclerc and is 32 points behind him in the Driver Standings after nine races.

Schumacher thinks that this is because, with Vettel leaving, the Italian team has begun to build the car around the Monegasque.

“In general, it has to be said that the collaboration between Ferrari and Sebastian is no longer working,” he added.

“All improvements or further developments of the Scuderia are based on Leclerc’s strengths and weaknesses. He is the man of the future.

“This is the big problem for Sebastian: he needs a different car than Leclerc. Everything that helps Charles does not help Sebastian. That’s how the big time gap of half a second in qualifying can be explained.”

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