Szafnauer speaks up for Vettel: "He seemed to have all the problems"

After an inglorious exit with Ferrari, it wasn't exactly a dream debut for Sebastian Vettel with his new employer Aston Martin. According to team principal Otmar Szafnauer it is too early to write Vettel off.

Disappointing debut for Vettel

In his first race weekend, Vettel qualified eighteenth, started last and single-handedly ruined his race by crashing into the back of Esteban Ocon, receiving a ten-second penalty and eventually finishing fifteenth. In the end, Vettel left Bahrain with five penalty points on his license.

"Yes it wasn't the best race", Szafnauer let us know Crash.net, yet he also sees positives. "He drove a time in the top ten and felt good in the car." The Aston Martin team boss, therefore, does not want to write off the German just yet. "I think it's very, very early to say that. We only have one data point, one race."

Confidence in Vettel

Szafnauer, therefore, remains confident that Vettel will get up to speed in the coming races. "The car he is driving now is completely different from the car he drove before. He only really felt happy in the car in qualifying, when he had the yellow flags."

Moreover, Vettel has had very little time in the car, especially after the difficult winter tests. "We only had three days and he had to share those days with Lance and he seemed to have all the problems. So I'm still confident."