Ferrari team Sebastian Vettel left behind "very different" to the one he joined

Ferrari

Ferrari team Vettel left behind "very different" to the one he joined

Vettel joined Ferrari from Red Bull in 2015

Sam Hall

Saturday 6 February 2021 17:59

New Aston Martin driver Sebastian Vettel believes the Ferrari team he left behind at the end of last year was "very different" to the one he joined in 2015.

Ahead of last season, Ferrari announced it would be parting company with four-time champion Vettel at the end of the year. After considerable speculation, Aston Martin announced in September it would be providing the German with a new home.

When Vettel joined Ferrari, after a six-year stint with Red Bull during which time he won his four titles, Maurizio Arrivabene was then the newly appointed team principal.

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With Mattia Binotto stepping into the role in 2019, Vettel highlighted the change in leadership styles as one of a number of noticeable contrasts across his time with the Scuderia.

"Very different," he said. "Obviously we started off with different people in the lead, different personnel, so very different.

"I think the atmosphere in the garage was still the same, the spirit remained unbroken and it’s obviously a shame we didn’t achieve what we set out to achieve.

"But there were reasons for the strengths and reasons for the weaknesses in the past years. I would say it was still quite a bit different. In some things the team evolved, in other things maybe there was still room."

As his time with Ferrari came to a close, Vettel became increasingly complimentary of Charles Leclerc, who comprehensively outscored the 33-year-old German 98-33 last year.

Lending another mention to his former team-mate, Vettel expressed his excitement at linking up with Aston Martin, that finished fourth in last year's constructors' standings in its former Racing Point guise.

"Obviously, Charles has a long time ahead of him with the team, a lot of work, we’ll see how it evolves," added Vettel.

"For me, obviously, the chapter has ended and I am starting a new one with a different team, which I am very excited about."