Sebastian Vettel says he felt "extra pressure" during his Ferrari stint, took a while for him to recover from the disappointment

Sebastian Vettel spent six years with Scuderia Ferrari, winning just 14 of 118 races and averaging 233 points per season. He joined the team on the back of four back-to-back Formula 1 titles but failed to add any more to his tally.

At the end of the 2020 season, he left the Prancing Horse and joined Aston Martin F1 on a two-year deal, which ended in 2022 — and with it his Formula 1 career.

Looking back on his time at Ferrari, Vettel stated that his stint in red had an emotional toll on him. Speaking on an episode of the Beyond the Grid podcast, he said:

“It was a toll as well. I mean, I think I never felt that sort of extra pressure being a Ferrari driver. If anything, I felt the extra pressure that I had, an expectation to myself that I want to succeed in this place, and I want to make this thing work. Looking back, it probably did take a while to sort of recover.”

Despite failing to win the title with Ferrari, the German has come to terms with his stint with the Maranello outfit. He said:

“There are plenty of reasons why I didn’t, why it might not have worked but, in the end, I think I’m still very happy and at peace with what we achieved. I had a lot of fun. I think I have a very strong emotional connection to Italy, the people of Italy, and to Ferrari as a brand.”

Sebastian Vettel added:

“It was a privilege to race for Ferrari and we had great moments together. So lots of memories that I will keep forever and lots of friends that I made. In terms of the numbers and statistics, I failed, because my target was to win the world championship and I didn’t. But [I have] no regrets and lots of things that I learned, and I wouldn’t go back and change anything.”

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Red Bull boss Christian Horner backs Sebastian Vettel to become a team principal in future

When Sebastian Vettel decided to walk away from Formula 1 at the end of the 2022 season, he gave no hint of what the future had in store for him. He spoke about wanting to take some time off before assessing his options, though he has hinted several times about staying in touch with the sport in whatever capacity suits him best.

The 35-year-old's former Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner believes that Vettel has all the qualities needed to become a team principal. He said:

“He [Sebastian Vettel] is a great people person. He understands the value of people and the contribution that they make to success. And I think he's turned into somewhat of a driver counsellor in the last couple of years as well. So, it really depends what he wishes to apply himself to.”

He added:

“He's one of those guys that's annoyingly good at anything he chooses to do. So I'm sure if he chose that path he would be very good at it.”