Why Sebastian Vettel won't copy Roger Federer in twilight of career

Vettel, Aston Martin, Azerbaijan — Photo: © LAT Images

Sebastian Vettel

Why Vettel won't copy Federer in twilight of career

Vettel says he will step aside for the next generation when the time is right

Ewan Gale

Sunday 13 June 2021 16:38

Sebastian Vettel has insisted he will not follow tennis star Roger Federer's ideology of continuing to compete in F1 simply for enjoyment.

Aston Martin driver Vettel took his first podium of the season at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and has slowly built up his performance level since switching to the Silverstone-based team from Ferrari in the winter.

When Federer was offered as an example of an athlete continuing to compete for personal enjoyment, Vettel said: "I think we all share love to the sport otherwise we wouldn’t have gotten into this position, so that is something that unites us.

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"I think then, individual motivations can be different so the nature of why you do it later on in your life career, the reasons behind it might be different.

“But I can only speak for myself. I’m really in it to win. That is where I get the ultimate buzz and that is the sort of meaning for mean.

“Irrespective of that, I still love driving so I think you don’t lose that but I have always loved the competition of it as well, the element of fighting against the others on track, trying to find out who is the better one on the day when it matters etcetera, together working with your team trying to overcome all sorts of obstacles."

Vettel will know when to "let other kids have their chance"

Vettel continued to outline the differences between tennis and F1 from a competition standpoint, explaining he would move out of the way of the next generation with limited spots available on the grid.

“If you compare it to other sports, there is a limited amount of seats in F1," Vettel added.

"I think if your heart is not fully in it anymore, for whatever reason, then it is time to step aside and let other kids have their chance.

“In tennis, you can argue you’re not taking away somebody else’s spot so it is a different ball game but in racing, with only 20 seats available, potentially you are.

“Lots of different shoes and everybody is free to do what they will.”