Sebastian Vettel has reiterated he has no intention of leaving Ferrari before the end of his current contract with the team.
The German is facing increasing pressure at the Scuderia having twice failed to maintain a title challenge against Lewis Hamilton partly through his own mistakes.
Now, this year he faces a new threat from teammate Charles Leclerc, with many believing the Monegasque can push Vettel to improve, but even if 2019 also doesn’t go as hoped, don’t expect to see Sebastian leaving.
“It’s quite known that my contract goes until 2020 so, don’t expect anything else,” he was quoted by GPFans.com.
“I’m very happy here. Obviously my goal is to win the Championship. We were not getting as close as we want, so there’s still a job to do, and I feel that’s my mission and the reason why I’m here, for myself, for the team.:”
Vettel also insists he won’t get disheartened or demotivated should results go against him.
“I’ve got a great passion for driving, but on top of that, I’ve got a great passion for this team, for Ferrari, inspired throughout my whole childhood,” he stated. “For me, it’s pretty clear what I’m here to do.”
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As for Leclerc’s arrival, the four-time F1 champion is expecting him to be “very quick” and will only “pick up” speed as the year goes on.
“The main thing is to work together as a team. On-track I don’t need to remind Charles he wants to be quicker than me and the same goes for me,” Vettel continued.
“That’s normal. You find the 20 best drivers in the world in the 20 cars on the grid, nobody needs a reminder of that.”
Former Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg has also weighed in on the Vettel-Leclerc battle, declaring the established veteran will have no choice but to prove himself against the young pretender.
“Sebastian doesn’t have the luxury to have another season like last year or he’ll be beaten by his teammate,” he told Spain’s Marca. “He has to act now and that will be very, very fun.”
