Sebastian Vettel believes the contrast in results between himself and Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen is covering up just how fast the Finn is.
Since becoming teammates in 2015, Vettel has won a total of 10 races to Raikkonen’s none, double the number of podiums and far more than just the solitary pole that the 2007 champion scored in Monaco last year.
Many would put that down to the somewhat undeniable claim that the German is the clear number one at Ferrari, but the four-time champion is sure he doesn’t always have things his way.
“If you look at the previous years, the image is a bit distorting. It wasn’t as one-sided as you might think if you look at the results,” he claimed.
“It’s been incredibly close this year so far. To be honest, most of the Fridays I think he had the upper hand so far.”
Indeed, it is true that at the past three races, Raikkonen could have been on pole for each had it not been for last-gasp efforts from Vettel or a mistake, as it was in Baku.
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His not-so-strong races often lead many to question why the Italian team continues with the 38-year-old but that criticism doesn’t bother him.
“The end result matters. The rest doesn’t really count,” he said. “The people that we work with know what’s happening and what’s not. I don’t really care if people think you are slow. I know what we are doing.”
Each year it has now become common for speculation to swirl over the Finn’s future, with Daniel Ricciardo currently being linked to a seat in 2019.
On that though, Kimi remains nonchalant.
“It’s been the same story every year since I can remember, maybe 15 years, every year I’m out,” he claimed.
“I’ll do my stuff on my side. I enjoy the racing, that’s the only reason I’m here. The rest, we’ll see how it plays out.”
