'Vettel is a spoiled brat'

Former F1 driver Eddie Irvine has been hugely critical of the behaviour of Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel and has branded the German's attitude in 2017 as that of a 'spoiled brat' as he tried to chase down Lewis Hamilton in the championship race.

Vettel was well positioned midway through the season but reliability became an issue for Ferrari and eventually Hamilton pulled away to clinch his fourth driver's championship.

The 30-year-old has reflected on the season as a whole as a missed opportunity, but speaking in an interview with Motorsport-total.com, Irvine claimed that Vettel only has himself to blame and that his attitude contributed to his downfall.

He said: "Sebastian really let himself down image wise with his antics in the car, out of the car. [He] behaved like a spoiled brat.

“It’s frustrating for him to get four easy world championships at Red Bull, which was by far the best car and he only had to beat Mark Webber.

“So it was easy to win the championships, now he’s having to work for it. Lewis obviously has now got the best car and he doesn’t have to work so hard.

“It must be hard for Sebastian to see it going away from him.”