Wednesday 05 May 2021
Finally points for the new team?
Vettel’s crippling car gets an update
Three races, zero points: Even after the team change in Formula 1 things are going extremely modest for Sebastian Vettel. The four-time world champion continues behind, complains of poor performance. At the race in Barcelona next weekend, an upgrade should help.
Upon arrival in sunny Barcelona, Sebastian Vettel’s eagerly awaited delivery was already ready. New parts for his crippling AMR21 were for the Spanish Grand Prix (Sunday, 3 p.m. / RTL and in the live ticker on ntv.de) flown from Aston Martin’s Silverstone headquarters to Catalonia.
Upgrades on the underbody should at least compensate for the weaknesses of Vettel’s new car – so that the German can finally get into the points again in Formula 1. “I think there will be a step forward in Barcelona,” said Vettel: “The question is how big he is compared to the others.”
The four-time world champion last made progress in qualifying in Portugal even without the further developments made for Barcelona. For the first time since leaving Ferrari, Vettel reached Q3 in Portimao. In the end, it was only possible to hold onto starting position ten for a while. With 13th place jumped out at least the best result of the season so far.
In the competition of midfield teams like Alpha Tauri or Alpine, Aston Martin was again left behind. Teams like McLaren or Ferrari that were seen as supposed rivals before the season are even further away. And Vettel’s personal gain after three races is also the numerical proof of chronic trailing behind: the 33-year-old has zero points on the account.
“We lack the power”
For someone who has been used to battling for victories and podiums for a decade, this is a difficult reality to accept. Even after the sobering end at Ferrari. “We lack the power. We don’t have enough speed,” complained Vettel: “We had hoped that we might be able to take a few points.” It remains to be seen whether this will succeed in Barcelona. “I have the upgrades that Lance has already used in Portugal, he found them promising,” said Vettel, looking at his team-mate Lance Stroll: “I’m looking forward to finding out for myself.” However, Stroll’s success in Portimao was manageable. The Canadian even finished 14th behind Vettel.
Vettel did not see the fact that the son of team boss Lawrence Stroll received the upgrade before him as a disadvantage. Stroll, who was behind the wheel for the previous Racing Point team, “felt more comfortable in the car than I did from the start,” said Vettel: “We are still getting to know the car, we still try out a lot during the sessions and try it out Figuring out limits. ” So the hope remains that Vettel can use his experience in Barcelona and get more out of the improved car than last time. He must. The German is also under pressure. Whether the Aston Martin project will be successful, at least in the medium term, depends to a large extent on his contribution.
Vettel is considered meticulous and obsessed with details. His feedback carries weight. And there is still a lot to talk about. Despite the decent qualifying in Portugal, “the racing speed is still better than the speed on one lap. So we have to improve Saturday to have a good chance of scoring points on Sunday.”
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