"You can't spend money"- Sebastian Vettel on why 2022 F1 season is the 'hardest year to catch up' for teams

Sebastian Vettel is in his final season in F1, having driven for five different F1 teams and won 53 F1 races and four world championships. The 2022 season, however, has been hard for the German and his current team Aston Martin. The Silverstone-based outfit has scored 25 points so far this season, of which Sebastian Vettel contributed 20.

Speaking to the press, Vettel explained the drop in performances for the British team this season. He explained that the budget cap has led to less development in the car. He also said that a team that started last in the championship at the beginning of the season cannot miraculously start fighting for wins in the second half. Calling it the most difficult season to catch up to the leaders, he said:

"It's the same old game nothing has changed. It's been like this for as long as I can remember. I've never seen a team starting last in the beginning of the season and all of a sudden being in the front at the end of the season, so you don't catch up. Probably this is the hardest year to catch up because you can't spend money."

Development costs money but with a limited budget of $141.2 million, Aston Martin is finding it difficult to do much. With Singapore and Japan coming up, they need to keep an accident buffer because such events tend to have a lot of retirements.

The budget cap in F1 was introduced to limit excessive spending for rich manufacturers and level the playing field in terms of development. Aston Martin's team principal, Mike Krack, recently spoke about the budget cap in F1 and said it is impossible to track every penny spent. He said:

"You cannot plan to the last penny because you always need to leave a little buffer for accident damage. We are very fortunate that we did not have much, but we have Singapore and Suzuka to come and these are always races where it can be potentially expensive. So we are okay, but not comfortable."

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Sebastian Vettel looking for a strong Singapore GP performance

The Singapore GP is returning to the F1 calendar this month after three years. The Marina Bay Street Circuit will host the race on October 2nd. The last time the sport raced in Singapore, Sebastian Vettel used to drive for Ferrari.

He won the 2019 race with Charles Leclerc coming second and Max Verstappen rounding out the podium places. Sebastian Vettel will be hoping for a strong performance at a track he has always excelled at. He has won at the Bay five times, the most out of any driver.