Helmut Marko, the man who ‘discovered and made’ Sebastian Vettel, has admitted that the four-time Formula 1 World Champion is no longer one of the best drivers on the grid and blames it on the ongoing polemics at Ferrari.
The tale of Marko mentoring Vettel through his junior career to F1 via Toro Rosso and then, of course, those momentous four years with Red Bull are the stuff of legend.
But since then, Vettel has spent five years at Ferrari with relatively little success, while his shares have plummeted amid his sporadic form and constant errors, big and small. At the same, time Charles Leclerc in the sister car has made the German’s life alot more complicated than it has ever been in the top flight.
Marko told Motorsport-Total, “Unfortunately, I have to say that he is no longer among the best. Maybe Sebastian is a bit too honest.
“He was spoiled by Red Bull because we always spoke honestly with one another. Ferrari is known for politics within the team, but don’t write Vettel off just yet,” he warned.
Meanwhile, speaking about the festive season, Vettel told Blick newspaper, “Charles gets a present from me anyway. Lewis, Max and Kimi will get a nice card from me like last year. And like last year, I probably won’t get an answer this time either…”