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Sebastian Vettel says he is “at peace” with his bad season at Ferrari last year and “excited” to start working with his new Aston Martin team.
The four-time champion said he had “high expectations” as the Aston Martin name returns to F1 for the first time in 60 years.
Vettel said: “I’m not happy with last year in terms of performance, partly my performance, but I accepted it.
“There are things that did not go well, but I am looking forward to this year.”
Vettel, who learned that Ferrari would be leaving before last season started, said that Mercedes “had to be the favorite” for 2021 and that Aston Martin, formerly known as Racing Point, had an “unofficial goal, or such. Official time “of finishing third.
McLaren overtook them in that position in the final race of last season.
A champion advances
Vettel, winner of 53 grands prix and one of the most successful F1 drivers of all time, said he had nothing to prove after his disappointing last two years at Ferrari, in which he was outclassed by his teammate Charles Leclerc. .
And he said he was confident he was still capable of winning another championship if he has a car capable of doing it.
“It’s no secret that last year’s stages I wasn’t at my happiest,” said Vettel. “This year I am looking to the future.
“Things are a little different, but from what I have seen, people are very capable and talented and it is the first time in recent years that they get oxygen to breathe.”
That comment is a reference to the budget increase that has been given to the team under owner Lawrence Stroll, as well as the fact that a budget cap has been introduced in F1 for the first time this season.
Why is Aston Martin in F1?
The new car was featured online with contributions from celebrities such as James Bond actor Daniel Craig and NFL star Tom Brady.
Canadian Billionaire Riderescued what was then known as Force India from the administration in 2018 and renamed it Racing Point.
Last year, the 61-year-old took over the storied but struggling sports car company Aston Martin and decided to change the name of his F1 team to the brand to promote it around the world.
Stroll told BBC Sport in January that his ambition is to turn the team owning in title contenders and at the launch he said that the “ambitions of the team were limitless.”
Vettel’s teammate Lance Stroll, Lawrence’s son, paid tribute to the transformative effect his father has had on the team, which until he took office was noted for exceeding one of the smallest budgets on the grid.
Lance Stroll said: “It has given the tools to the incredibly talented people in the factory. Now we can move forward and exciting times await.
“The potential is there to fight up front, maybe even challenge Red Bull. Mercedes is going to be very difficult because they are a bit further ahead and we hope that we can increase the gap with the teams we were fighting last year. “. “
Vettel described Stroll as “very fast” and said that some of the criticism the Canadian receives, often based on the fact that he drives for his father’s team, “is not fair.”
How is the car?
Technical director Andrew Green and team principal Otmar Szafnauer said they believed it would take three to five years to convert the team into title contenders.
Vettel said: “It’s a journey that everyone is excited to embark on, but we don’t expect to get there tomorrow.”
“If we do, I don’t think anyone will care. But it’s not going to be that easy.”
The Aston Martin car looks a lot like a Mercedes, as the 2020 Racing Point did.
It has the 2020 Mercedes gearbox and rear suspension, which Aston Martin buys from the world champions, in addition to its engine and the use of its wind tunnel.
This suspension was seen as an important development step for Mercedes last year due to the amount of potential downforce it unlocks, and it could turn out to be the same for Aston.
The fact that Aston Martin was allowed to face the rear of the 2020 Mercedes was a controversial issue last year because development restrictions have been placed on the teams this year for cost-saving reasons.
Rivals saw Aston buying these parts from Mercedes as a “free” upgrade, while others are limited to just two “tokens” on changes to the car’s mechanical parts, but the FIA governing body rejected their complaints.
Aston Martin has been able to spend its two tokens in addition to the suspension change and has chosen to update the monocoque of its car. As such, your car could be said to have the potential to be a bigger change from last year’s design than any other on the grid.
Green said the team was confident they could give Vettel a car that had handling characteristics that would allow it to perform at its best.
He added that he believed the team’s new car, which is scheduled to run for the first time in a short test at Silverstone on Thursday, with both drivers taking risks behind the wheel, was “a solid base to work on.”
