Former Minardi team boss Giancarlo Minardi believes that Aston Martin driver Sebastian Vettel should call it quits from the sport as soon as his contract expires.
This comes on the back of a forgettable Australian Grand Prix outing for the German driver.
Prior to the race, Vettel received a fine from FIA which left him far from happy.
Matters didn’t get much better for the four-time champion on race day as his lack of practice was evident for all to see, as was the lack of reliability delivered by the AMR22.
As was the case with teammate Lance Stroll, who is facing growing criticism in the sport, the Australian Grand Prix was one that both would like to forget as quickly as possible.
Minardi wants Vettel to retire
Minardi believes Vettel is only harming his reputation staying in the sport.
“He was unlucky to have missed two grand prix because of COVID,” he said.
“But he should retire. He has enough money as it is, he has won titles and he will never win again.”
Aston Martin team boss Mike Krack, however, blamed the car for most of the troubles that Vettel faced during the weekend.
“Everything is fine with Seb,” he said.
“The fact that a driver like him, a four-time world champion, has so many problems over a weekend has little to do with his driving performance.
“It’s not normal when a driver of his calibre is off the track so often over a weekend.”
Vettel seemed far from happy with the car himself.
Some had opined that Vettel may lose motivation to stay in the sport since the car at his disposal is far from competitive.
Has Vettel lost motivation?
Former F1 driver Timo Glock seems to concur with this opinion.
“It’s going to be a tough road for the whole team,” he said.
“I can imagine that Sebastian Vettel will lose his patience at some point because he knows very well how long it takes to get out of a hole like this.
“We’ll have to wait for the next races to see how he can motivate himself – and what he then decides for his future.”
Vettel’s contract at Aston Martin ends at the end of 2022. If Aston Martin is unable to reverse its fortunes, it will be interesting to see whether he is prepared to soldier on.
Read more: Ex-world champion blasts Stroll for destroying Aston Martin – “He gave the strangest excuse ever”