Vettel wants a multi-year deal, Ferrari don't
Sebastian Vettel believes he should get another three years at Maranello. With Charles Leclerc signed until 2024, does Ferrari risk securing a long-term line-up?
Contract talks between Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari reportedly broke down this week after the Scuderia offered the 32-year-old a one-year contract. But, Vettel pushed back and said he has the experience to justify a multi-year deal.
The news was reported by F1-Insider.com, citing an unnamed source that said a one-year contract extension was “a joke”. Vettel’s current three-year deal with Ferrari expires at the end of 2020.
Sky Sports Italia corroborated that Vettel only received a one-year contract extension in late March, adding the deal came with “a much lower” payday than past years.
Sebastian Vettel’s future with Ferrari has been somewhat murky following Charles Leclerc’s phenomenal maiden-season at Maranello. The young Monegasque driver scored two victories and seven poles last season and finished 24 points clear of Vettel in the championship.
He has also been retained by Ferrari until the end of the 2024 season.
Vettel, meanwhile, suffered a difficult year in 2019. Races in Bahrain, Italy, and Britain were marred by mistakes; he collided with Leclerc in Brazil; and in Canada, Vettel’s brief trip across the grass led to a penalty that handed Lewis Hamilton a race win.
At the start of April, Vettel said in an exclusive interview with Motorsport.com that happiness would be more important than money in his next deal. “I think the really important thing is that you are happy, that’s the key,” he said.
By signing Vettel for three-seasons, Ferrari would theoretically lock both of their seats until 2023. What happens if Fernando Alonso wants to make an unlikely return or Daniel Ricciardo leaves Renault?
Speculation about Vettel’s future is in overdrive too. Ralf Schumacher and Bernie Ecclestone have both floated the idea of McLaren. Unlike Bernie, though, Schumacher concluded Vettel would be better off staying with Ferrari.
Vettel personally hasn’t let much slip about where he’s leaning. He recently spoke to a range of international media about his current options and F1-Insider.com has published a transcript of what he said in full.
Vettel said there was a “high chance” negotiations would conclude before Formula 1’s first race of 2020, which Formula 1 is aiming to hold in July. In 2017, when Vettel signed his last Ferrari contract, that was publicly revealed in August.
There was one key quote to take away from Vettel’s interviews. “It is also clear to me that [the contract negotiation] is not the top priority at the moment.”