Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, 2019

Vettel: “F1 is not the sport I fell in love with”

2019 Canadian Grand Prix

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Sebastian Vettel says decisions such as the penalty which went against him in the Canadian Grand Prix yesterday have hurt his affection for Formula 1.

A five-second time penalty for rejoining the track unsafely cost Vettel victory in the race to Lewis Hamilton. Afterwards Vettel said the decision was one of many which he feels show the sport has gone in the wrong direction.

“I really love my racing,” said Vettel in the post-race press conference. “I’m a purist. I love going back and looking at the old times, the old cars, the old drivers. It’s an honour when you have the chance to meet them and talk to them, they’re heroes in a way. So I really love that but I just wish I was maybe as good, doing what I do, but being in their time rather than today.

“It’s not just about that decision today, there’s other decisions. Just hear the wording when people come on the radio, that we have now. We have an official language. It’s all wrong.

“We should be able to say what we think but we’re not so in this regard. You have all this wording: ‘I gained an advantage, I didn’t gain an advantage, I avoided a collision’. I just think it’s wrong. It’s not really what we’re doing in the car. It’s racing, it’s common sense.”

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Vettel was penalised because he forced Hamilton to take evasive action when he rejoined the track. Vettel said he doesn’t believe that should lead to a penalty.

“If there’s a hazard on track, obviously you slow down because it’s quite unnatural to keep the pedal to the floor and run into the car and then say, ‘ah, it’s wrong that the car was there.’

“I rejoined the track and then Lewis obviously had to react. I don’t know how close it was or close he was. Once I looked in the mirror he was sort of there but for me that’s racing.

“I think a lot of the people that I just mentioned earlier, the old Formula One drivers and people in the grandstands and so on, would agree that this is just part of racing but nowadays it’s just… I don’t like it. We all sound a bit like lawyers and using the official language.

“I think it just gives no edge to people and no edge to the sport. Ultimately it’s not the sport that I fell in love with when I was watching.”

The Ferrari driver has also criticised previous decisions regarding the rules and insisted his complaint was not just to do with the circumstances of yesterday’s race.

“Obviously it hurts me today because it impacts on my race result. But I think this is more of a bigger criteria.

“When I wake up, I won’t be disappointed. I think Lewis and myself we share great respect and I think we’ve achieved so much in the sport, I think we’re both very very blessed to be in that position so one win up, one win down.

“I don’t think it’s a game-changer if you’ve been around for such a long time. But as I said, I’m not happy about all this complaining and stuff that we see so many times.”

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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97 comments on “Vettel: “F1 is not the sport I fell in love with””

  1. So he loves old times? In old times drivers died every race weekened, now we have ‘common sense’ rules in place, like rejoining the track in a safe manner and other penalties to deter drivers from unsafe driving. If he suggesting we go back to those times? Is his life so good he wants to die?

    1. Dean Stewart
      10th June 2019, 8:38

      Probably the most ridiculous comment I’ve ever seen on here

      1. Agreed. Lol. Sometimes you need to come on here simply to have a good laugh at the rubbish written. Everyone becomes a journo when commenting…!

      2. Dean Stewart yeah, you are right, we should cheer for 1994 Australian Grand Prix like fair fights… thats hard racing right? sighs… some people say “ridiculous” without even knowing the meaning!

    2. Josh (@canadianjosh)
      10th June 2019, 9:10

      Keep smoking up Ivan and hitting the vodka before reading the articles.

      1. :) love it.
        Ivan, I think Seb was suggesting he preferred a time when drivers were just allowed to race with much fewer penalties, not sure he wanted to race more dangerous LOL. He has a couple of young kids, he doesn’t want to die!

    3. What? I think there’s a bit of middle ground before we go back to people dying Ivan.

    4. Yes, Vettel wishes there were driver deaths every weekend and his life is so good he wants to die.

      That’s exactly what he’s trying to say…

  2. Well said. I was happy to see a lot of anger and disappointment in him yesterday. I hope it leads to better performances.

    As for F1? PC, Health and safety got the better of it. Sad to say.

    1. Good he calmed down a bit.
      His anger outburst yesterday was understandable, but it looked… very silly. Like a 4-year old, who was just prohibited to watch TV.
      At least I did similar “performances” when I was 4…

      I am always skeptical when people say “old times were good”. The thing is – they weren’t. They were different, something might be “considered” a bit better, something – definitely worse. And people just forget about bad thing or just don’t know about them.

      Mostly because of changes Seb doesn’t like, F1 has been blessed to have just a single driver fatality in the last 25 years. For me it counts immeasurably more, than something which has been lost since the mentioned “old times”.

      1. @dallein
        Spot on. The ultimate comment.

      2. Well said!

      3. @dallein

        The drivers are holding their emotions back all the time. The chemicals running through their body is insane. Nobody thought less of Michael Schumacher when he had a couple of tantrums. I remember him throwing his helmet against the garage wall.
        Drivers also come to blows or near enough in BTTC and Nascar.

        By ‘old times’ I imagine Seb is talking about the Schumacher era, one of his heroes, who got away with almost anything, much to the approval of the majority of so-called fans of that time.

      4. I disagree that he had an ‘angry outburst’ akin to a 4 year old. Nor did he say ‘old times were good’ but he does highlight that they were edgier and not filled with PC lawyer like talk. It is also unfair and inaccurate to assume Seb doesn’t like the changes throughout the years that have lead to only one fatality in the last 25 years. That’s not what he is talking about and after referring to himself as a purist, obviously nobody knows more than he what the dangers were of past eras compared to today. You’re of the mark by putting words in Sebs mouth and making assumptions about his sentiment.

      5. Old times in the mind of a 32 year old could be 20 years ago…. he didn’t specify a particular era

      6. Panagiotis Papatheodorou (@panagiotism-papatheodorou)
        10th June 2019, 14:17

        Guess you didn’t watch Spa 1998.

  3. If you look at his age you know not a lot of drivers died in his old days.

  4. As always, F1 ‘stops being fun’ when bad things happen to you, not the other drivers – I think that yesterday’s decision was pretty consistent with stewarding over the last years. Also, this time the penalty spoilt a great story, hence the outrage not only from Vettel but many fans, experts and ex-drivers, too. But stewards are there to apply the rules, not to throw a party for everyone.

    It does not mean that Vettel is wrong though. According to the current rules, Vettel should have let Hamilton past after making the error, which I do not think is right. So perhaps it is time to review the rules.

    1. So, you basically think a driver should be permitted to rejoin the track after a mistake cutting the line of a rival who got the turn correctly?
      I would expect “mistakes” to flourish, if such a craziness is implemented, lol.

      1. If a the driver isn’t in complete control he can come back on the track any way the car is taking him. The car was going in the opposite direction to what he wanted. The car snapped to the right, he put on opposite lock, which meant the steering wheel turned to the right and the car ended up on the racing line. Not sure how the stewards don’t understand opposite lock and give you a penalty or expect you drive into a wall

    2. F1oSaurus (@)
      10th June 2019, 10:35

      @girts He didn’t have to let Hamilton past, but he should have left room for Hamilton to allow the battle for position. They could have perfectly fine driven side by side and fought it out at the next corner.

      Yet instead Vettel chooses to ruin the racing and put Hamilton in the wall to end any chance of a fight.

      1. Ah so easy to play woulda, coulda, shoulda. Ok then so what of LH not backing off a tad upon seeing potential danger ahead but rather trying for a gap between Seb and the wall against a driver who was a tad out of control? Ok for him to force himself in there because Seb ‘should have left room’ while regaining control of his car, lol. Even LH says Seb’s reaction was instinctive and he would have done the same, so why be more outraged than LH himself?

        1. You start so well @robbie, but then

          what of LH not backing off a tad upon seeing potential danger ahead …

          Well, that didn’t happen. Same as old man Brundle when he said that: it’s not reality. When Vettel was closest to the wall, Hamilton was behind his rear wheels, exactly because he had already backed off!

          Indeed, Hamilton said he would likely have done the same. Somewhat of a poisoned chalice, bc. in doing so, he said that what he would ‘also’ have done, was deliberately squeeze his opponent. And I agree, of course Vettel had to do that (if he, as the stewards decided he did, had enough control of his car to do so instead of it being lack of control), otherwise he’d have lost the race then and there. Though Hamilton then continues to indicate a penalty isn’t unwarranted.

          1. Bottom line for me, it was a racing incident, not worthy of a penalty, and I would have the same opinion had the drivers positions been reversed and it had been LH doing what SV did.

          2. @bosyber

            Though Hamilton then continues to indicate a penalty isn’t unwarranted.

            Because he knows the regulations, according to which it should be a penalty. I remember Hamilton was much more like Max at the start of his career, pushing the boundaries of the acceptable, and duly got penalized (a lot). So what do people expect him to do? He now races within the (stricter) regulations and expects them to be applied. It’s what he indicates by the final comment: if he, Hamilton, knew Vettel wouldn’t have been penalized, he’d have gone for the gap, without braking, and they’d have been a crash. And Vettel would have been held responsible.

            What the incident tells me is that Hamilton was the better driver, forcing Vettel into an error under pressure, and has far more emotional control and drives much more smartly. Hence the win. Vettel’s only recourse is to inflate a false sense of injustice.

    3. Pretty much that @girts. I can wholly understand that Vettel feels like this right now.

      I’m also sure that in a couple of hours, or at worst days, he will put it aside and look to the bright side of things – they were genuinly up to pace this weekend, and the team didn’t mess up their strategy either.

  5. Can’t wait to see this play out in the Netflix series next year.

    1. Do you think they will split it into 2 episodes with a cliffhanger?

      1. @dallein Yes, and they’ll swap the episodes over so that part 2 is first ;)

  6. Wow, of all the quali and race sessions I had to miss, it had to go and be this one!

    Having caught the replay of the incident… Last year at this very venue, Stroll had a similar tank slapper when he put Hartley in the wall… Did he pick up penalty points for that? It was a race-ending crash for them, but I think he got away scot free.

    1. F1oSaurus (@)
      10th June 2019, 10:57

      @phylyp To be honest the race was rather boring.

      The whole race was waiting for Hamilton to force Vettel into a mistake and then have a nice battle for the lead. Then finally the inevitable mistake from Vettel comes, but Vettel ruins it all by blocking Hamilton unfairly. No nice fight for position, just another red mist episode from Vettel again and it all ends with a penalty.

      1. Anger management is not Vettel’s strong point, he has past form in this matter.

  7. I’m seriously baffled as to why this situation is as controversial as it is, it seems like a very straightforward call to me. Vettel made an unforced error, which resulted in him running across the grass and almost putting another racer in the wall. While it can be argued that he did all he could to keep the car on the road (after he made a mistake), the stewards still have to set a precedent that will discourage future drivers from similarly dangerous errors. Vettel is feeling disillusioned about the sport because he is buckling under the pressure, not because the rules are draconian or because the grammar is different.

    I lost a lot of respect for Vettel today after that display of immaturity and petulance; Did Vettel even get weighed after he got out of the car? Isn’t that a legitimate technical violation? Don’t the drivers also have contractual obligations to attend both interviews? I know some rules suck, and life is hard, but you’re supposed to be an adult and a high caliber athlete that people can look up to. Such a person should be able to navigate sucky rules and a hard life with grace, poise and a little bit of serendipity will come their way. The points leader showed himself to be a much better man today, without resorting to abusing the very sport that made him who he is today.

    1. @im-a-kobe

      I lost a lot of respect for Vettel today after that display of immaturity and petulance

      The crowd loved it, it was the loudest cheer of the weekend.

      Anyway, I doubt he cares about whether or not he has your respect.

      1. @kingshark

        The crowd loved it much in the same way crowds love gladiator fights. I’m sure there’s a vocal majority who really don’t care about the gladiators’ well being and are just there for the blood/short-term drama, but there are also those of us who love the sport and the fight but don’t really want to see anyone killed and so would support introducing and maintaining a little civility to it.

        I’m well aware that my opinion won’t sway Seb’s life in any way; I’m just taking advantage of my right to make a comment in a comment board, and add a different perspective to the discussion. Cheers.

        1. @im-a-kobe

          Embarrassing post. He switched the two signs around and you are acting like he killed someone. Find something better to be outraged about in life.

          1. @kingshark

            I didn’t hear any outrage in @im-a-kobe ‘s post and you’re just disparaging him… It’s a fair comment, crowds always love a good fight or crash whether or not someone is breaking the rules.

    2. Vettel would obviously react differently if he was comfortably leading the world championship and the stewards had penalized Hamilton or Verstappen. But I doubt if it is possible to “discourage future drivers from similarly dangerous errors” as Vettel made the error because he was on the limit and that is what F1 is about. It is rather about the price of such an error – should it lead to inevitable loss of position or not?

      By the way, #1 sign in front of the empty spot was quite fitting as no one felt like a winner after yesterday’s race.

    3. “discouraging Errors” Nobody is trying to make a mistake. penalising a mistake that you have no control over makes no sense. And Hamilton should have backed off with a car out of control right in front of him.

      1. What did Senna say, something like ‘If you see a gap and do not go for it you are no longer a racing driver’. Hamilton is not driving down Bond Street avoiding vehicles and pedestrians he is racing, racing, racing, racing, its the name of the game.

      2. Man, all the grief @im-a-kope is getting for a seemingly reasonable post on a forum for well, discussion, that’s just sad. I understand people being frustrated, and we are all free to give arguments why we agree of disagree, but why get personal?

        And please let the silly Brundleism of ‘Ham should have backed off’ go: Hamilton did back off, that’s the reason he was almost behind Vettel at the point VET got closest to the wall, instead of beside him. And it’s what the stewards deem forcing the other driver into evasive actions, which was part of their reason for a penalty. Again, agree with the penalty, but let’s try not to invent facts to fit a narrative.

  8. I feel sorry for him, Mercedes are so dominant this season the only way he was going to win this was by driving the perfect race. He had to be right on the limits in sectors 1 and 2 to ensure Hamilton wasn’t too close to him at the hairpin. I never saw him lock his brakes at all, Hamilton must have locked his breaks at least 5 times. He made one mistake all weekend and it cost him heavily.

    1. F1oSaurus (@)
      10th June 2019, 10:54

      @emu55 Perfect race? He simply had to keep it on the track.

      Besides, Ferrari clearly had the fastest car all weekend. Leclerc was fastest on the hard tyre and Bottas could only take that the fastest lap away by stopping for a set of softs in the last few laps.

  9. @phylyp :

    “Car number 18 [Stroll] lost the rear in turn five,” they noted in a statement. “As both cars were in close proximity they collided, no driver was predominantly to blame for the incident.”

    Thats how they ruled it.

    1. @webtel – thank you.

  10. The stewards decision ruined the race, Hamilton had no need to try and overtake afterwards. I turned off the TV after that.

    1. Thank you. The only guy here with any sense apparently.

  11. Panagiotis Papatheodorou (@panagiotism-papatheodorou)
    10th June 2019, 9:09

    Damn right it isn’t. Can you imagine Piquet passing Senna in 1986 nowadays? They would have penalized Nelson for dangerous driving. Racing sometimes is hard. I want drivers to be drivers, not just robots.

    1. A couple of weeks ago, we’ve seen a good amount of goog overtaking in Monaco.
      Cutting corners is not “racing”, unless you talk about Super Mario kart.

  12. I watched the race in full. I felt sad when the penalty was announced. Not only did the ruling spoil the race for the last few laps and leave a sour taste in everyone’s mouth, but on a grander scheme of things, such decisions fail to take the human element into account. After all, rules are in place to ensure that no one gains an undue advantage and also keep the human emotion in check.

    Did Sebastian make a mistake ? Yes.
    Did he lose control of his and join the track in an unsafe manner ? Yes to the extent that Lewis had to lift a bit.
    Does joining the track unsafely amount to a penalty ? Yes. he did get one. And it took away an all important victory. That amplifies the penalty even more and quite understandably so.
    Considering how close they were, could Vettel have done anything better to join the track safely ? Yes. But not without losing his place. And that’s what made the difference. The human element–the emotion and the drive to win even after making an avoidable mistake–that’s what has lead to this ‘fia’sco.
    Vettel had only one intention: to win. Penalizing him for that is wrong but in doing so you are also setting the precedent of allowing a driver scot free after he rejoined the track unsafely–willingly or not.
    I believe Vettel’s penalty was for the greater good–a sport and its regulations cannot be buoyed by human emotions as and when needed. Yes, i am disappointed but as a fan of the sport, i would take this one on the chin and move on.

    1. Well reasoned post @webtel, find much to agree there.

  13. Dont know what he is so frustrated about? Stop making so many errors and all of this wouldn’t happen. He should be frustrated at himself for making that error while leading and throwing away the win. Just few races back in Bahrain he spun the car and throw away a podium.
    He is falling out of love for F1 because his performances have fallen away and he is consistently coming second best to Lewis. 2011-2013 version of Sebastian Vettel would have won the Canadian race from pole comfortably.

    1. He is falling out of love for F1 because his performances have fallen away

      I’d agree with that. If you’re not winning you’re thinking of quitting. Hamilton was talking about, Alonso’s done it. Now that Hamilton’s winning? He thinks he can go another 5 years!

      Everyone loves F1 when they’re winning. Just like every fan loves F1 when their preferred driver/team is winning.

    2. I’m sure it’s hell of an easy to drive Mercedes, but it’s a bit different to drive Ferrari, namely this year’s car. Vettel’s overdriving it because there’s no other way to stay close to Mercedes.

      1. F1oSaurus (@)
        10th June 2019, 10:51

        @pironitheprovocateur Yet Leclerc set the fastest lap on the medium tyres. Bottas had to pit for soft tyres to take the fastest lap away from Ferrari.

        Just face it, you are making stuff up.

        Ferrari clearly had the fastest car for this race, just like they did in Bahrain and in both cases Vettel messed up royally. Vettel just can’t deal with the pressure.

        1. @f1osaurus – Look at the lap times. Vettel and Hamilton are basically dead even through the entire race. Vettel had track position from a better pole time—fair enough. But he didn’t pull away, which one would expect in a “clearly…fastest car.”

          Vettel did crack or lose concentration or make a mistake. But if he was in the fastest car, he would have been well ahead of Hamilton by that point. The cars were very even this weekend with Merc better in sector 1, about 50-50 in sector 2, and Ferrari ahead in sector 3. I imagine if Hamilton had pole, the result would have been identical but in reverse.

          1. F1oSaurus (@)
            10th June 2019, 19:45

            @hobo

            Vettel and Hamilton are basically dead even through the entire race.

            Yes of course they are. hamilton was behind Vettel, hat else would you expect?

            Geez man do you even think before you write at all?

            Leclerc had the fastest lap on the hard tyre. Half a second faster than Vettel and the mercs. So yes, Ferrari had the faster car, but indeed Vettel wasn’t their fastest driver. Just like he wasn’t in Bahrain. Or in several of the other races for that matter.

            Again, do you even think?

          2. @f1osaurus – I appreciate the ad hominem.

            You said Ferrari had the faster car. Vettel was the faster Ferrari driver this weekend. LEC led P1 and P2. VET led P3, and led LEC in all of Qualifying as well as the race. Sorry, but LEC isn’t faster in Canada just because he takes a later pit stop and with the same tires is half a second faster than Vettel who had to manage his tires more because he was leading the race and pitted first (of the Ferrari duo, as well as before Hamilton).

            LEC had a faster lap than BOT? BOT wasn’t 1.2 seconds up on the field? By your rationale, BOT was had the fastest car, because he had the fastest lap by a mile. Except that’s not how it works.

            So if, by your calculations, the fastest car is leading the second fastest car, why would the second fastest car “of course” do the same lap times? Why wouldn’t it fall behind?

  14. Dijon 1979: “He’s off, and he’s back again!!” And he has 12 penalties from the previous lap for leaving the track, contact with another car, unsafe driving, crossing the white lines and gaining an advantage.

    1. Exactly what Vettel is pointing to @vjanik. Hard racing should be embraced. I feel very sorry for the fans that shelled out big money to watch that race live at the track. They are the biggest losers of the weekend.

  15. Not really sure what he’s talking about. I’m not even an F1 expert but controversy with overtaking and rejoining the track was around in the Senna days and the controversy was even bigger than what Vettel had to put up with. At least he wasn’t disqualified preventing him from winning the championship!

    Bit of a joke to cry about the “old days” for this particular topic when it was happening then too.

  16. You too!?? We had enough drama queen already! This is the same joke as the one who said didn’t want to win ‘like this’ on the podium after crying for penalty on the track…

  17. I agree, F1 is not the sport I fell in love with 25+ years ago.

    I used to be Mark Webber fan so I did not overly like him in the young early days however I have to say over the years Seb has really grown on me. I would not say I am full fan however I think I understand him better now and his values. He really does seem like a genuine guy and doesn’t have his head in the clouds.

  18. @martin the stewards decision did not ruin the race. it ruined vettels 1st place position hopes. hamilton and vettel still displayed good attack and defense. it was intruiging until the end. the race was not ruined. vettel did notnpullnover to the side and give up. hamilton did not turn his engine down and drive to a 4.5sec deficit. rules r rules. good 1s bad 1s controversial 1s…

    1. Josh (@canadianjosh)
      10th June 2019, 10:30

      Hamilton definitely was trying to get by him until the very end as he likely didn’t want the drama that we got at the end but the race was ruined with that decision.

  19. The key point in all of this is that the Race Director had discretion under the regulations to make Vettel let Hamilton pass him and then continue racing to the end of the allotted number of laps. Instead, the Race Director allowed the stewards to make a very unsophisticated call here because, after all, the stewards change practically every race making them inherently amateurs not qualified to officiate F1 races. I’d like to see one set of stewards officiating each and every race so that we get some intelligence and consistency. I’d also like to see the Race Director be accountable in some manner for failing to do his job, as was the case in this race. We need intelligence and sophistication in F1 officiating.

    1. F1oSaurus (@)
      10th June 2019, 10:47

      @gwbridge Ferrari could have called the race director and stated that they would let Hamilton by. Many penalties have indeed been averted by that course of action.

      The only one who didn’t do his job properly was the driver who didn’t keep his car on the track and then came back almost putting another car in the wall.

      1. @f1osaurus

        The general consensus seems to be that Seb shouldn’t be driving a car not good on its tires as Mercedes, faster than the Mercedes.
        Maybe so-called fans would be happy if he reduced his pace a bit, but didn’t lose control of the car.
        What an awesome pole though.

  20. isaac (@invincibleisaac)
    10th June 2019, 10:41

    It’s comments like this that make me think Vettel would consider retirement sooner rather than later. And after yesterday’s result I wouldn’t be surprised if he wants to leave the sport soon.

  21. F1oSaurus (@)
    10th June 2019, 10:45

    Vettel had no issues with Verstappen getting a penalty for the exact same incident in Japan 2018.

    “Look at Kimi – he’s off the track and he comes back. If Kimi just drives on, they collide. But it’s not always right that the other guy has to move.”

    So Raikkonen shouldn’t have to evade Verstappen coming back unsafely, but of course Hamilton should have.

    Vettel even makes the same silly remark like Verstappen did. They both implied that the other driver was in the wrong and that they should have passed on the inside.

    In reality though that’s impossible since they were already on the outside. Raikkonen and Hamilton would have had to brake to make it to the inside line and then they wouldn’t have their fair chance to overtake.

  22. Seb is the driver who gets away with almost anything all the time, he should just stop crying.

    1. ‘gets away with anything’ compared to who? This is all rather tame compared to what Schumacher and his team got up to.

      Just goes to show how saintized ‘the sport’ has become since the internet became hyper critical of it. Even becoming PC providing it doesnt hurt the money too much.
      How long before Gillette sponsor a car…..

  23. Quite distasteful that posters are relating Seb’s comments to deaths.

    He clearly means the Schumacher era. If you want to knock him, then do it because he welcomes Schumacher’s petulance going unpunished back then.

    It does look a bit pathetic today though when you have Formula E cars wheel and body banging all ‘race’

  24. Interesting that Hamilton did something simalar to Ricciardo to keep him behind in Monaco 2016 ,yet no penalty was given that day ,and as much as it was hard it was fair ,Ricciardo had to back off or would have been in the wall , like Vettel with Hamilton yesterday . People can call Vettel petulant if they want but it’s understandable in my opinion ,that’s a very harsh call and out of keeping with so many other categories of Motorsport .. where they actually let drivers race and don’t penalise honest mistakes ,F1 has become very sterile these days . Can you imagine what racers like Mansell or even the late great Ayrton Senna would have made of that !! LET THEM RACE .

    1. F1oSaurus (@)
      10th June 2019, 20:02

      No Hamilton didn’t. Hamilton entered the track moving to the LEFT. He only came close to Ricciardo one corner furtythe moving to the RIGHT.

      If you want an example of an actually identical incident then check out Verstappen on Raikkonen in Japan 2018. 5 second penalty plus point for Verstappen.

  25. Well it took Schumacher 4 years to win first championship with Ferrari. Vettel is now in his 5th year and it seems like the championship is slipping away again. It was a different story with Red Bull even though he made many mistakes between 2010-2013. Even Schumacher made costly mistakes in Ferrari but he could win next race by a mile. While Vettel has his up and downs he usually focuses more on the latter.
    Vettel is a great driver but somehow he is the one who finds himself at trouble for his mistakes more than Hamilton, Alonso or Schumi.

  26. I think some perspective is important in moments like this. I think it was the wrong decision, it robbed us of the end of the race we should have had and give us a result with an asterisk next to it.

    But the whole idea that it’s the sport getting worse puts me in mind of the complaints of domination, pay drivers, fuel/tyre management, and rules to reduce performance. People have rose tinted glasses if they don’t think the sport has always had these problems.

    Hamilton suffered a stewards decision in 2008, Senna had a championship taken away by a stupid ruling. Bad stewarding has always occasionally reared its head just like a team dominating isn’t new, drivers have always fuel saved and tyre managed, and pay drivers have always featured.

    None of these issues are good for the sport, but it’s nothing new. The sport isn’t dieing.

    1. Yes it is – 20 years ago the mere spectacle of seeing the cars themselves was enough. They were slower, yes, but waaay more visceral. It was not about instant gratification overtaking moves only. The sport could cope with its BS back then because the main spectacle – man and machine at the edge – was not diluted. Today the cars are fast, but even a race of 125cc Open Superkart from Cadwell park is more exciting to watch. And the latter is not bogged down in constant tire-talk, accounting rules and safety jacket nonsense.

    2. Panagiotis Papatheodorou (@panagiotism-papatheodorou)
      10th June 2019, 14:22

      Let’s look at the 1990s. Williams, McLaren, Benetton and Ferrari won WCC titles. Compare that to the 2010s. Red Bull and Mercedes. The cars back then were not as fast but the racing was closer. We had spectacle, close championships and many good races.

      1. F1oSaurus (@)
        10th June 2019, 20:03

        @panagiotism-papatheodorou With a better driver, Ferrari would have been WDC in 2017 and 2018.

        1. Panagiotis Papatheodorou (@panagiotism-papatheodorou)
          11th June 2019, 11:52

          Vettel lost the title in 2017 due to reliability. Malaysia and Japan cost him a lot of points.

  27. Vettel messed up under pressure and went off track. Everything after that is simply there to cover up that fact. Returning to the track and drifting deliberately back onto the racing line (after checking in his mirrors and seeing Hamilton), then the complaints afterwards on the radio and the scene in the paddock. It worked. Everyone keen for a Ferrari or non-Mercedes victory was there to console him. But it’s not the reality. He lost the race on the chicane. The more he plays the innocent victim and racing here on this, the more irritating it becomes. Hamilton pushed him into a mistake and again was the better driver on the day, at the front, when it mattered.

    1. *racing hero

  28. Who do we blame for spoiling the race? Well, what if Vettel had given Hamilton room to continue the overtake challenge and then — started to harry Hamilton’s tail and tried to get the lead back again, would that have been sporting, would it have been exciting, would it have pleased all the fans of Ferrari and Mercedes? Can we identify who spoiled an exciting race?

    1. F1oSaurus (@)
      10th June 2019, 20:04

      Exactly. Vettel’s action is what robbed of of a good fight. Not the penalty.

      Even if he had let Hamilton live on the outside, there still would have been a good battle for position.

  29. I agree with him, but he’s also made comments about other drivers over trivial issues.

    Maybe radio should be pit to car only.

    Hearing the so called best drivers in the world, crying over every little thing is ridiculous. Even in free practice, drivers are expected to drive off the track to let others through, and if they don’t, the impeded driver is instantly crying on the radio about it. This never used to be the case, drivers got on with it and did their talking on the track!

    Ham was instantly on the radio about Seb which is probably what led to the penalty. He should have shut up, manned up and overtook Vet on the track!

  30. Vettel choked again. He is a spent force. He aimed the car to block Lewis. He steered right, wheels pointed right. It was a block, a squeeze of Lewis against the wall.

    1. Burned out he may be, but his intention was more likely a last gasp, split second reaction trying to hold on to the lead. He was lucky he didn’t bin it in the wall in the first place.

  31. I don’t think you will find many drivers who disagree with the point Vettel was making & it’s been a pretty universal feeling for quite some time & not just in F1.

    You also won’t find many current & Ex drivers who will be anything other than disgusted with the penalty call yesterday & I wouldn’t be at all surprised if it gets brought up in future drivers briefings & that it results in rules been changed.

    You go back & watch races from the 70s/80s/90s & all that great racing that was seen & you then realise just how much of it would result in penalty’s today & you realise just how over-regulated F1 is & just how anti-racing much of that over-regulation is.

    Let them racing & let them sort it out on track, You know like it was for decades & still is in many other categories.

  32. If Vettel had raced “in the old times”, then the driver he DELIBERATELY RAN INTO in Baku would have gotten out of the car after the race and kicked his childish little a$$.

  33. This is an interesting read. So far the only former driver I’ve seen state that the penalty was correct is Nico Rosberg.
    https://www.espn.com/f1/story/_/id/26937130/andretti-mansell-others-baffled-vettel-canadian-gp-penalty

    1. F1oSaurus (@)
      10th June 2019, 20:07

      @velocityboy The most important F1 driver in this case agreed with the penalty though. Emanuelle Pirro was the one with access to the most footage and data on the incident.

  34. It hasn’t been since 2013 has it Seb?

  35. My sentiment exactly. Welcome to the club Seb. F1 is now officially a joke

  36. Well, the F1 that Vettel fell in love with was one where he was sponsored by BMW up through the ranks, then taken under Red Bull’s wings and given a fast car of sometimes suspect legality and very preferential treatment until he started being beaten by a fast team-mate and ejected in the direction of Ferrari, where results, cars and strategy have not been to his liking, even before the addition of yet another extremely fast team-mate. He is not without talent, as that’s why a lot of these things happened, however it’s no surprise he longs for the ‘old days’. Is Sebastian Vettel the driver that (some parts of) F1 fell in love with?

  37. Of course Seb liked F1 better when it was new for him and then he was winning everything. As @kartguy07 says, harder when Dan beat him in 2014 then Lewis has the better car and looks faster.

    Seb and Lewis’ careers look very similar for me for a few reasons. Both have undeniable talent, great speed and have found themselves in the right car at the right time (Lewis even said if not for Niki he would be a 1 x WDC- good call). Seb had Webber covered by just enough in quali (around 0.15 according to Horner) but was a master in getting out in front. Lewis I think a more complete driver.

    I just like seeing a 4 x WDC saying he has fallen out of love with the sport- I don’t think its because he’s not winning, the regs make it so hard to follow at times, it doesn’t invite a new viewer so well!

    The penalty was there, looking at the rule, but these rules need to be looked at I think, I saw just some pure racing.

  38. Come on Seb. Are you eating too much soy? Did you expect all those “lucky” wins that propelled you to 4 World Championships would last forever? You’re the architect of you own misery. Something that started more than a few races ago. Buck up like a good Teuton should. Concentrate and do a better job.

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