Sebastian Vettel will return for Aston Martin at the Australian Grand Prix to finally start his 2022 campaign. The team has confirmed Vettel is “now fit to race” after missing the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix.
Vettel had been present at the pre-season test session in Bahrain but was unable to race in Sakhir after he caught coronavirus ahead of the first Grand Prix. Experienced F1 driver Nico Hulkenberg has filled in for the German at the first two races of the 2022 season.
Posting on Twitter, Aston Martin said on Thursday: “We are pleased to confirm that Sebastian Vettel is now fit to race and will therefore line up alongside @lance_stroll in Melbourne to kick off his 2022 @F1 season at the @ausgrandprix.”
READ MORE: Sebastian Vettel confirmed to miss Saudi Arabian GP for Aston Martin
It is the second time the German has been called up to race in F1 since he left the sport having filled in for Sergio Perez at Racing Point after he contracted coronavirus last year.
Posting on Twitter, Hulkenberg said: “The last 10 days came unexpected – were very eventful, intense but amazing! Good times! Hulkenback 3.0 is a wrap.” However, some have called for the Le Mans 24 Hours winner to have been given a permanent race seat in the team.
Ralf Schumacher said: “If I were them, I would stick with Nico Hülkenberg because he can obviously bring added value and has improved significantly in the race compared to Bahrain. And that was despite his tire strategy being affected by the Safety Car. He did a great job, hats off.
“There are really only two possibilities – either he has been underestimated for years or current regular drivers should be reconsidered.”
Aston Martin have struggled so far for pace in 2022 and are yet to score any points. The team are powered by Mercedes engines which have struggled compared to the Ferrari and Red Bull powertrains so far this season.
