Formula 1 can be tough. True champions, however, learn and use these lessons to become better; in racing and in life. Sebastian Vettel is easily one of the greatest champions to ever race in Formula 1. Aston Martin though taught him a bitter lesson that eventually led to him quitting the sport altogether.
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In his Red Bull days, Vettel was unstoppable. With Ferrari, however, he wanted to emulate his childhood hero Michael Schumacher. The team from Maranello and the 4-time World Champion got close and gave Lewis Hamilton a run for his money. But eventually failed. Recently, Vettel sat down with Die Welt to talk about what triggered his retirement from Formula 1.
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According to the German, it was Aston Martin, their poor car performance, and his slump which led to his decision. “After all the self-doubt that came up in me, it was more important for me to realize that it’s okay to quit.” Vettel could’ve taken the easier way by quitting when at the top but he explained, “Of course, it would be a great thing to quit as a champion at the peak. Many of us try to do that, some fail and lose themselves.”.
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Would he have changed his mind if he was in a title-winning Aston Martin? “I asked myself the same question. I can’t answer it one 100% because the option didn’t exist. But actually, when I was thinking about it, I came to the same decision.”
He summed it all up by saying, “Personal weakness and thoughts are part of the performance and also success. At least for this realization, the past two years have been very worthy for me.”.
Many would think that his time at Aston Martin was the only determining factor in his decision. However, it turns out, that cracks had started to appear at Ferrari, and Aston Martin was just the last nail in the coffin.
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Sebastian Vettel and his Ferrari nightmare as the Scuderia enthusiasm only “lasted until 2018”.
When Vettel arrived at Ferrari, he was the golden child. Dubbed ‘Baby Schumi’, he dreamed of emulating what Schumacher had done. Malaysia, 2015, seemed like a dream start and the genesis of something special and spectacular. But that dream didn’t last long, as Vettel explained.
ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – Sebastian Vettel of Germany driving the (5) Scuderia Ferrari SF1000 during the F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi at Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images)
According to him, “The enthusiasm lasted until 2018.” But he also figured that he was not being a good role model. “At some point I began to feel ashamed to contribute to polluting the environment with my work & not being able to at least stop it.”.
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