Sebastian Vettel will step away from F1 at the end of the 2022 season
(Picture: PA)Sebastian Vettel has announced he will retire from Formula 1 at the end of the current season.
The 35-year-old won four consecutive world titles between 2010 and 2013 while racing for Red Bull, the first of which saw him replace Lewis Hamilton as the youngest world champion in the sport’s history. Only Hamilton and Michael Schumacher have more race wins to their name.
Vettel joined Ferrari in 2015 but was unable to produce the same level of success and in his final season with the team finished down in 13th in the Drivers’ Championship.
He is currently in his second season racing for Aston Martin, with a sole podium coming at the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, and it will prove to be his final year in the sport.
“I have had the privilege of working with many fantastic people in Formula One over the past 15 years - there are far too many to mention and thank,” Vettel said in a statement on the team’s website.
“Over the past two years I have been an Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One™ Team driver - and, although our results have not been as good as we had hoped, it is very clear to me that everything is being put together that a team needs to race at the very highest level for years to come.”
He added: “I hope that the work I did last year and am continuing to do this year will be helpful in the development of a team that will win in the future, and I will work as hard as I can between now and the end of the year with that goal in mind, giving as always my best in the last 10 races.”
Vettel’s announcement comes on the same day that he joined Instagram. The German posted a video explaining his passions away from the sport, insisting he has never seen being an F1 driver as his “sole identity”.
He spoke of new challenges ahead while also confirming that being with his family was more of a motivation to him than winning races.
“The decision to retire has been a difficult one for me to take, and I have spent a lot of time thinking about it; at the end of the year I want to take some more time to reflect on what I will focus on next; it is very clear to me that, being a father, I want to spend more time with my family,” Vettel’s statement continued.
“But today is not about saying goodbye. Rather, it is about saying thank you - to everyone - not least to the fans, without whose passionate support Formula One could not exist.”
Vettel, an outspoken campaigner on environmental issues, appeared on BBC’s Queston Time in May and revealed he questioned himself “every day” about his job, admitting the travelling around the world to race was in contrast to his views on climate change.
It remains to be seen what he does next, with Aston Martin confirming they wanted Vettel to keep his seat for next season but he has opted to step away from the sport after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in November.
