Media report: Turned into is Vettel's contact with McLaren?

(Motorsport-Total.com) – Sebastian Vettel and Andreas Seidl know each other. Not only from small talk among Germans in Formula 1 paddock, but also because of their shared past. As Vettel, then a young child prodigy with braces, 2006 test driver at Sauber-BMW Seidl worked there as an engineer.

Now, as reported by the Spanish newspaper 'Marca' , Vettel is said to have contacted his old acquaintance again to inquire about possibilities, 2021 to work together. In heated times like this, in which there is excited speculation about the transfer market for 2021, that is of course, a headline that goes around.

The parties involved do not deny the alleged contact. “We are happy with our two drivers. They are the future for McLaren,” says McLaren team boss Seidl when asked by 'Motorsport-Total.com', but misses the opportunity to clearly deny the 'Marca' report, if he says: “Otherwise, we do not involve united states of america in these speculations.”

From the Vettel camp, in turn, one hears that the 32 – year-old does not get involved in the game, commenting on each rumor individually. In general, media reports about an upcoming farewell to Ferrari are constructed. And Vettel's big dream is still to become world champion with Ferrari. As long as this goal has not been reached, a team change is at least not Idea A.

Helmut Marko: “Vettel cannot be written off”

That the season 2019 from Vettel's point of view, no one denies. A development that will also be part of Motorsport-Total.com's big annual review (published after Christmas) – and about which we spoke in an exclusive interview in Graz with Vettel's ex-boss Helmut Marko.

We confronted Marko with the “conspiratorial thesis” that Vettel is no longer one of the three best drivers in Formula 1. “Regarding the season this year, I unfortunately have to agree with that,” replies the Red Bull Motorsport consultant. “But you shouldn't copy Vettel anyway.”

Marko can imagine that for Vettel it might have been “surprising” how fast Leclerc is. And Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto also finds that Leclerc relies on the difficult to drive SF 90 set better: “He had a little better grip on our problems. Simply because of his driving style.”

But at a Ferrari media event in Maranello, Binotto explicitly claimed to be the four-time world champion: “Seb is a key driver for us, he is central to our project. He has been part of this group for many years. He knows the team very well, he has a lot of experience. And he is a four-time world champion. Such a driver has to be a key figure be in our project. “

Even if he 2020 against Leclerc again and his contract expires at the end of the season? Binotto emphasizes that he is “happy” with the current Ferrari pairing, but: “We have to sit down and speak to United States of America with Seb so that we can understand his plans for the future.”

Ferrari: Vettel needs to know, turned into he wants

Rumors, also fueled by British TV experts at the end of the season in Abu Dhabi, according to which Vettel could end his career immediately, is complete nonsense, according to the four-time world champion. At Ferrari, of course, you registered this – and played the ball Vettel.

“We have to see how our strategy develops next year And we have to look at united states of america's performance and how it fits in the car and how it can motivate itself in the future, “says Binotto. “It's not about whether he made mistakes or not. It's about how he sees his future and how we see our driver pairing.”

That no longer sounds like an unreserved commitment to Vettel – finally it became known in Abu Dhabi that Ferrari is fishing for Lewis Hamilton. If the Mercedes superstar 2021 really came, there would probably be no more room for Vettel in the team. Because Ferrari throws Leclerc out is considered impossible.

Nevertheless, Binotto Vettel strengthens his back when he says, for example: “He didn't feel comfortable in the car at the start of the season.” For example, due to the “instability when braking”, which is a main characteristic of the SF 90 has been. And “having such a quick team-mate was definitely a headache for him.”

“But Seb is very analytical when it comes to getting better. He doesn't approach this exercise emotionally , but he looks at the data, compares the sectors, studies exactly where he is slower or faster. “

Binotto: Singapore was a key moment

In the first half of the season, Binotto admits, Vettel was “under great pressure”. But the victory in Singapore with the subsequent leadership in Sochi and two further second places was a psychologically important liberation stroke: “In the second half of the season he reacted very well,” praised the Ferrari team boss.

“The victory in Singapore was certainly a key experience for him, not just the victory itself, but also in terms of trust in the team – because he knew that he could rely on the team to support him when it matters. But I think that it's the right decision and the right time was to let him win. “

” The fact is that in the second half of the season, when he was more comfortable in the car, he was very, very fast. If you look at his racing pace, he was on a very similar level to Charles. Charles was quicker in qualifying, “says Binotto – and at least does not choose words that Vettel would continue to identify as Ferrari's number 1.

Turned into the McLaren rumors? Maranello has not said so far. Vettel knows that he has no 100% certainty that the Ferrari contract will be renewed, so he has to explore his options. It would also be negligent not to speak to Seidl, the head of a currently rising group.

In the upcoming “Silly Season” for 2021 it was should it really have taken place, certainly not Vettel's last conversation. If Hamilton snatched the Ferrari cockpit away from him, Mercedes would be free, and if Mercedes then brought Max Verstappen, Vettel could theoretically also return to his old friends at Red Bull.

But all of this is currently nothing more than that, just turned into it is: “Silly Season” …