Breaking news
Formula 1 Japanese GP
Vettel: "Not fair" to say whether Leclerc is toughest teammate
Sebastian Vettel says it’s too early for him to name Charles Leclerc as the toughest teammate he’s had in his Formula 1 career.
Adam Cooper
Edited: Oct 12, 2019, 9:53 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
In his first year at Ferrari, Leclerc has taken five pole positions to Vettel's one, and he currently leads the four-time world champion by 215 points to 194.
Vettel was partnered with Nick Heidfeld on his debut with BMW Sauber, and his subsequent teammates in F1 were Sebastien Bourdais and Vitantonio Liuzzi at Toro Rosso, Mark Webber and Daniel Ricciardo at Red Bull, and Kimi Raikkonen and Leclerc at Ferrari.
“I don’t think it’s fair, it’s been too short,” said Vettel when asked if Leclerc was the toughest competition he has faced.
“Certainly he’s young, he’s very quick. I don’t think there’s anybody who doubts that. Ultimately you can’t really compare because you’d need to put Mark and Kimi and Daniel and Vitantonio and Bourdais – did I miss anyone? - in the same car at the same time.
“So it’s not fair. Certainly in terms of raw speed he’s very quick, but obviously it’s a bit early for him, it’s only his second season in F1.
“It’s very different to say Kimi or Mark, who had spent a lot of time in F1 and had a lot more experience. I don’t look at it that way.”
Vettel acknowledged that Leclerc’s pace had helped him benchmark the 2019 Ferrari when he was struggling.
“It’s good that he’s a real reference, and as I’ve said especially in the times when I struggled a little bit to really get the most out of myself and the car, then it’s good to have that, because it can also help you.
"As a team it’s good to have two drivers fighting for the same ground on track.”
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Hamilton predicts F1 will keep DRS "for a while" yet
Next article Raikkonen: F1's wet-weather limitations "look ridiculous"
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Adam Cooper
RB: Tsunoda “mentally on a different level” in 2024
Formula 1
Formula 1
Japanese GP
RB: Tsunoda “mentally on a different level” in 2024
Andretti planning F2 and F3 entries to promote US talent to F1 team
Formula 1
Formula 1
Andretti planning F2 and F3 entries to promote US talent to F1 team
Andretti F1 team formally opens new Silverstone facility
Formula 1
Formula 1
Andretti F1 team formally opens new Silverstone facility
More from
Charles Leclerc
Charles Leclerc admits he missed a chance against Max Verstappen – but not the obvious one
Formula 1
Formula 1
Singapore GP
Charles Leclerc admits he missed a chance against Max Verstappen – but not the obvious one
Why Charles Leclerc failed to outbrake Max Verstappen in Turn 1 at Singapore GP
Formula 1
Formula 1
Singapore GP
Why Charles Leclerc failed to outbrake Max Verstappen in Turn 1 at Singapore GP
More from
Scuderia Ferrari
Charles Leclerc and Pecco Bagnaia: From kings to princes
MotoGP
MotoGP
Charles Leclerc and Pecco Bagnaia: From kings to princes
Sainz blasts "most unfair penalty ever", seeks stewards' explanation
Formula 1
Formula 1
Australian GP
Sainz blasts "most unfair penalty ever", seeks stewards' explanation
Calado: "Difficult" for WEC Hypercar newcomers "to win straight off"
WEC
WEC
Calado: "Difficult" for WEC Hypercar newcomers "to win straight off"
Latest news
Jesse Love barely holds off Sam Mayer for NASCAR O'Reilly win at Phoenix
NASCAR O'Reilly
NOAP NASCAR O'Reilly
Phoenix II
2 h
Jesse Love barely holds off Sam Mayer for NASCAR O'Reilly win at Phoenix
Lando Norris faces anxious wait as F2 prepares to decide future of his racing team
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Singapore GP
4 h
Lando Norris faces anxious wait as F2 prepares to decide future of his racing team
NASCAR Cup Phoenix starting lineup: Blaney earns pole as Larson struggles
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Phoenix II
5 h
NASCAR Cup Phoenix starting lineup: Blaney earns pole as Larson struggles
Ryan Blaney kind of faces a must-win scenario this weekend at Phoenix
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Phoenix II
6 h
Ryan Blaney kind of faces a must-win scenario this weekend at Phoenix
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe