Vettel: “No announcement in the next two weeks”
While Ferrari announced the extension of Kimi Räikkönen's contract, Sebastian Vettel believes there will be no announcement about his own future in the near future.
Traditionally, Ferrari likes to reserve its major announcements for Monza, its home race. But this year, the Scuderia chose Spa-Francorchamps and the end of the summer break to announce that Kimi Räikkönen was retained for an additional season.
As usual, the main person involved did not appear very eloquent on the subject during the traditional Thursday press conference, simply responding that the reasons for his extension should be asked of Ferrari and not him.
But while the Ferrari leaders obviously have the final say, Sebastian Vettel’s opinion is clearly important since the German is clearly the number 1 driver for the Reds. Asked about the topic in the Spa-Francorchamps paddock, the championship leader responded that he felt he certainly had some influence in the discussions but was not 100% responsible for them.
He was nevertheless very complimentary about his teammate: « There are no questions about his talent and speed. It’s a good thing that the team also acknowledges the work he does, even behind the scenes. If he’s happy to stay, I’m happy for him. It works well between us. »
But the contract of the 2007 champion is not the only one set to expire at the end of the year. The same goes for the former Red Bull driver. The latter estimated that the tifosi temple would not be the place for the announcement of his possible extension: « I don’t think there will be any announcements in the next two weeks. »
If he arrives with a 14-point lead, he knows that the Spa-Francorchamps and Monza circuits do not best match the characteristics of his vehicle. He therefore intends to focus exclusively on the sporting aspect and wait a little longer to reveal his future.
From our special correspondent at Spa-Francorchamps
