Vettel: Ferrari need more 'skill and commitment' to beat Mercedes

Sebastian Vettel says he and Charles Leclerc hold the secret to getting Ferrari closer to Mercedes at the Japanese Grand Prix, dismissing a major difference between the rival manufacturers in Suzuka.

Ferrari have been the dominant force in recent weeks, with Leclerc taking four pole positions in a row.

However, Valtteri Bottas led a pair of all-silver one-two scores in Friday's practice, with running now to be halted until Sunday morning in Suzuka due to Typhoon Hagibis.

With more than half a second left to make up to Bottas, Vettel is not yet feeling the pressure.

"Maybe the other cars are different, maybe ours is the same - it depends from which way you look at it," he said.

"For sure we saw today that Mercedes was very fast and feeling very comfortable straight away.

"Maybe they [Mercedes] did a step forward, maybe the track suits them more than [the others]. A lot of things might be the case. I think we can improve, though, so we see where we are on Sunday morning."

Both Vettel and Leclerc tried to make up ground late in FP2 by running extra qualifying sims when the track was rubbered in, but traffic stopped them improving significantly.

Asked how the Scuderia can improve, Vettel added: "Hopefully more with skill and commitment rather than data and computers.

"As I said, I think there was a bit of margin, it was not a perfect day for us, so there's a bit more in the car."

Related

More F1 news

Latest F1 news

Isack Hadjar injury reality revealed by F1 champion after missing three races

• 19 minutes ago

F1 News Today: Lewis Hamilton releases statement as Mercedes comeback confirmed

• 1 hour ago

BBC confirm huge live coverage deal for FIA championship

• 1 hour ago

F1 star admits family had to make huge sacrifice to help his dream

• 3 hours ago

Kimi Antonelli admits loyalty factor after opening up on Ferrari move

• Today 12:28

The biggest problem with the 2027 F1 schedule (isn't the Monaco sprint race)

• Today 10:55