F1 News: Sebastian Vettel Reveals Communications With Toto Wolff - "Not A No"
Former driver Sebastian Vettel has confirmed his stance on reports of his return to Formula 1, saying that he isn't planning a return to the sport currently. However, he emphasized that a future return to Formula 1 isn't ruled out. He also revealed of exchanging text messages with Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff after the announcement of Lewis Hamilton's exit from Mercedes for Ferrari next year.
Key Takeaways:
- Sebastian Vettel has clarified that he is not currently planning a return to Formula 1, but he hasn't ruled out the possibility of returning in the future.
- Vettel confirmed exchanging text messages with Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff after Lewis Hamilton's announcement of moving to Ferrari for the 2025 season.
- While Vettel has no immediate plans to pursue a comeback with Mercedes, he acknowledges that his stance may change in the future, stating that everything is a process, and there's neither a definite yes nor a definite no at the moment.
After Hamilton's shocking announcement of his Ferrari shift for 2025, Wolff revealed that he was in touch with Vettel but, on matters other than racing for Mercedes. Almost a month later, Vettel has now confirmed the same.
The four-time world champion stated that while he currently has no immediate intentions to transform his discussions with Wolff into a pursuit of a Formula 1 comeback with Mercedes, he is in no position to assure that his stance on the matter would remain the same in the future.
When asked by the Neue Zürcher Zeitung about the chances of his return to Formula 1 following the news of Hamilton moving to Ferrari, Vettel said:
“I was surprised by this change.
“The Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff didn’t call me, but we briefly exchanged text messages. But so far it’s not an issue for me, also because at 36 I still have all the time in the world. So it’s not going away.
“But my omens haven’t changed. I think I’ve learnt and understood a lot in this one year without racing, including about myself. Being on the other side has had a huge impact on me and many questions have come up. So far, there are no active plans.”
When asked if that means his answer to an F1 return was a no, Vettel answered:
“No. I also said back then that there wouldn’t be a clear no in that sense, because I believe that everything is a process.
“And maybe there will come a point when I say, ‘Yes, I would like to go back’. When I get it sorted mentally so that it suddenly makes sense again.
“At the moment, however, I’m doing very well without driving Formula 1. There’s no definite no, but there’s no definite yes either.”
