26 February 2024 , 11:46
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Ralf Schumacher has revealed that Sebastian Vettel is eyeing a stunning return to Formula 1 following Lewis Hamilton ’s huge move to Ferrari.
The four-time world champion retired in 2022 after a two-year stint with Aston Martin. His decision to step back brought an end to a stunning career that saw him win 53 races during spells with BMW, Toro Rosso, Red Bull and Ferrari.
The Scuderia have made a sensational move in recent months by poaching Hamilton from Mercedes. In the aftermath of that move, plenty of movement has been predicted on the grid, with Vettel backed for a return two years after his retirement.
“I've heard that Sebastian Vettel wants to drive again,” Schumacher said to Sky Sports. “Of course, a gap has to be closed now. You saw what was going on on the stock market after Lewis Hamilton's move to Ferrari. That triggered something.”
One obvious move for Vettel would be to take Hamilton’s vacancy at Mercedes. However, Schumacher reckons that the German may struggle with the Silver Arrows - and also raised doubts over Hamilton's current team-mate George Russell.
Sebastian Vettel warns of looming F1 ban and is "very worried about the future"
He added: “Whether George Russell has the charisma to replace Lewis Hamilton worldwide in terms of marketing or Sebastian Vettel as a German driver at Mercedes, that's probably a size too big for him.”
While Vettel has been backed for a sensational return to F1, there have already been a couple of contrasting statements over his future. The German admitted last year that he hadn’t totally closed the door on a return.
Sebastian Vettel retired at the end of the 2022 season (Getty Images)Do you think Sebastian Vettel could return to F1? Share your thoughts in the comments below
Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: “I can’t say no, because you don’t know. I think it's something that if you asked all of them, probably some of them would have said, ‘No’, and some of them, ‘I don’t know’, but in the end all of them came back, so I can’t exclude it.
“It probably will depend much on when, and obviously it’s not endless, because at 36 it’s not like, ‘Yeah, in 10 years’ time, maybe I think about it’, then time has passed.
“It will depend on the challenge, whatever, but it’s not in my head right now. I’m enjoying the sort of outlook of the challenge of what to do next.”
Elsewhere, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has already revealed that he has had discussions with Vettel - but they were not about an imminent return to the track. He said: "I think he made the decision to not race anymore. We are talking on a regular basis. We've also talked yesterday, but it wasn't about driving for us in the future."
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