Vettel’s warning: F1 will disappear…and rightly so

Michelle Foster 15 Oct 2021 9:01 AM

Sebastian Vettel in his Aston Martin cockpit.

Sebastian Vettel prepares for a run in his Aston Martin.

Although conceding being an F1 driver is an odds with his green stance, Sebastian Vettel is pushing for the sport to make changes, starting with the engines.

Vettel has spent this season building bee hotels and picking up litter, the Aston Martin driver not just speaking about saving the planet but putting his words into action.

But given that he does compete in Formula 1, which is anything but environmentally friendly, it does beg the question how can he still speak on green issues.

The four-time World Champion, though, says he sees no reason why Formula 1 can’t embrace environmentally friendly ideas.

And that, he says, he needs to start with the power units.

Asked about those who criticise him for what they see as being hypocritical, he told Motorsport-Total.com: “Sure, and I think it’s valid because Formula 1 is not green.

“I think we live in a time where we have innovations and possibilities to arguably make Formula 1 green as well, and not lose any of the spectacle, of the excitement, of the speed, of the challenge, of the passion.

“If anything, we have so many clever people and engineering power here, we could come up with solutions. But the current regulations, I think they’re very exciting, the engine is super efficient, but it’s useless.”

Sebastian Vettel helped local kids in Austria build a 'Bee Hotel' in the shape of a racing car 🐝

The goal was to give bees and insects more space to thrive 💚 pic.twitter.com/bIAIecOrs8

— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) July 2, 2021

Check out all the latest Sebastian Vettel/Aston Martin merchandise via the official Formula 1 store

“It’s not going to be an engine formula that you will buy on the road in two years when you decide to buy a new car, for example,” he continued.

“Therefore, you can argue, what is the relevance? I think there are certain things that people are talking about for the future of the sport in terms of regulations, that could shift the change and shift into more relevant changes.

“And I feel if they come, that’s a good thing for Formula 1, and it’s also a vital thing.

“But if they don’t come, I think I’m not so optimistic. If they don’t come, I think that Formula 1 will disappear. And probably rightly so.

“We are at the stage where we know we’ve done mistakes, and we have no time to keep doing mistakes.”

The Aston Martin driver feels Formula 1 has enough talent in its brains’ trust to find a solution, including sustainable fuels.

“I feel that we could use our resources, meaning the intelligence that Formula 1 has, with all the clever people on board, the resources, the facilities, and also the money that Formula 1 has to spend,” he said.

“I mean, let’s not forget we spent the last nearly 10 years on an engine that is super-efficient, and we’ve squeezed a lot of power out of it, but it has basically no relevance to the normal person on the road and the next generation of cars, but had huge costs.

“Probably each manufacturer spent more than one billion developing that engine in those years. That money can be found again, or some of that money is around to hopefully push the right causes.

“So that’s where I sit and say… I don’t know what exactly the best solution is. But I feel we have to start doing it now, rather than discuss for another five years, and in the meantime do five years of nothing.”