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Sebastian Vettel is to leave Ferrari at the end of this season after contract talks dramatically collapsed over a much-reduced salary offer. The four-time world champion, understood to have been presented with only a one-year extension and a huge reduction to his £36 million-a-year terms, could now decide to walk away from Formula One altogether, potentially paving the way for Lewis Hamilton to take his place at Maranello. The split completes an extraordinary deterioration in relations between the Scuderia and their star driver. “My relationship with Ferrari will finish at the end of 2020,” Vettel confirmed. “In order to get the best possible results in this sport, it’s vital for all parties to work in perfect harmony. The team and I have realised that there is no longer a common desire to stay together.” Only last month, Vettel had talked confidently of striking a deal with Ferrari in time for the first race in July, while Mattia Binotto, his team principal, described him as “genuine and straightforward – we appreciate him so much”. This mutual appreciation quickly soured, though, when Ferrari indicated that they were only prepared to offer him another 12 months. “This is a decision taken jointly by ourselves and Sebastian, one which both parties feel is for the best,” Binotto said on Tuesday. “It was not an easy decision to reach, given Sebastian’s worth as a driver and as a person.” Given Vettel’s recent results, Ferrari’s hesitancy about committing to another three-year deal is understandable. In 2017 and 2018, the German made crucial errors to cede the championship advantage to Hamilton, while in 2019, he was routinely upstaged by young Monegasque team-mate Charles Leclerc, finishing a distant fifth in the standings. The rupture with Ferrari, for whom Vettel has driven since 2015 and won 14 grands prix, threatens to leave him without a race seat next year. There is scant hope of him securing a return to Red Bull, where he won four straight world titles, given his former employers’ reluctance to create any antagonism with their superstar, Max Verstappen. The only possibility for Vettel to remain at the front of the grid would be to seal a move to reigning six-time champions Mercedes, who have made no secret of their desire for a German driver. But this would depend on Hamilton leaving the team where he has won five championships in six years, still an outlandish prospect. While the temptations for him to end his career with the Prancing Horse are self-evident, given his lifelong admiration for the Italians and his collection of Ferrari road cars, Hamilton is a pragmatist these days, thinking only of driving the most competitive car. So far, he has given no suggestion of wanting to leave Mercedes, saying: “I don’t think there’s going to be a huge amount of movement.” A double act of Hamilton and Vettel would represent an unworkable clash of egos. As such, Vettel, at the age of 32, confronts the likelihood of a bleak exit from the sport he cherishes.
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