Formula 1 chief Ross Brawn believes that Sebastian Vettel is key to the success of Ferrari this year, and by leading the championship for Ferrari he is boosting the image of the sport.
Brawn told Sport Bild, “What Sebastian does in the red car is great advertising for Formula 1. Most fans want to see a successful Ferrari team. And Sebastian is the key to it.”
“Mercedes are pushing their limits, while Sebastian makes it onto the podium quite comfortably. Ferrari is more consistent,” added the Englishman who was instrumental in Ferrari’s turn of the century success in F1 and led his Brawn GP to title in 2009 before it morphed into Mercedes.
Indeed Vettel was disappointed not to win the recent Spanish Grand Prix, “We’re not entirely happy because the win was there. The car was quick enough but the way the race happened, it wasn’t meant to be. The most important thing is that we were there. Once again fighting, hanging in there, not much missing at the end.”
The German leads the 2017 Formula 1 Championship standings by six points, from Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, by six points after five rounds. The pair have each won two races with Valtteri Bottas winning one so far.
Big Question: Can Sebastian and Ferrari sustain their form and challenge for the F1 title this year?