Vettel’s start at Aston Martin was hampered by problems with pre-season testing that limited his mileage and ability to adapt to the AMR21.
The four-time world champion qualified 18th in Bahrain after encountering double yellow flags in his final Q1 hotlap, but was downgraded to last place on the grid after stewards ruled he had disregarded the second yellow sector.
From the 20th, Vettel made a solid start but struggled with tire wear earlier than his rivals in midfield.
He then received a 10-second penalty for running in the back of Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, which rewarded his chances of scoring points on his Aston Martin debut when he came home 16th.
When asked by Autosport how frustrating his first race with Aston Martin was, Vettel admitted he wasn’t at home in his new car and said his team had a lot of problems to tackle.
“It’s probably not the weekend we were looking for, but there are a lot of things we learned in the race that we need to address,” Vettel replied.
“We’ll see how quickly we can fix them, but I’m not at home in the car. There are a lot of things that are fighting me so I can’t really focus on driving. We have to talk to them and try them to repair.” You.”
Vettel stated that the problems he faces go far beyond getting used to another car after switching to the Mercedes team after five seasons at Ferrari.
Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin AMR21
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
When asked how far the team is from 100 percent, Vettel admitted it was “probably less than half” and hoped solutions could be found quickly.
“I’d probably say less than half as there are still so many things going on that break the rhythm and make it pretty difficult to feel the car and what I have to do to drive fast. So there is still a lot to do.” “explained the German.
“I obviously adapt to the way the car wants to be driven, but there are obviously a lot of things that add certain inconsistencies that don’t help. I hope we can fix a lot of things very quickly.”
Despite a compromised start, Vettel said he felt good in his new environment and that he was optimistic that Aston Martin can still have a strong 2021 season.
“Yes, very good, I feel really good. Of course, I’m a bit sorry for such a bad weekend because I know how much preparation is required before the start of the season.” he added.
“On the other hand, it can only go up from here. As I said, we’ve learned a lot, so there’s a lot of work to do, but it is what it is and we have to take it step by step.
“It’s probably not the start of the season we wanted, but I think the next couple of races will be very good for us to calm things down.”
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