No conversations with Vettel about 2021 seat, says Racing Point boss Otmar Szafnauer

Sebastian Vettel's future has been the topic of much speculation since it was announced he is to leave Ferrari at the end of this season, after what will have been six seasons with the Scuderia.

Some – including ex-McLaren and Red Bull driver David Coulthard – have suggested Vettel would be a good fit for Racing Point, with the Silverstone-based team set to morph into Aston Martin for the 2021 season.

"[Vettel] could well be a brilliant asset in a team like that, in terms of knowledge and experience of Red Bull, knowledge and experience of Ferrari,” Coulthard said.

But team boss Otmar Szafnauer said on the latest F1 Nation podcast that although he goes back a long way with Vettel, he has not yet spoken to him about joining the team, insisting he was happy with the current driver line up of Sergio Perez and Lance Stroll.

“I can’t speak for Seb but we all know what a great job he’s done,” Szafnauer said. “He won early on in the Toro Rosso which was fantastic, and four world championships. He’s had some great races and I think at his relatively young age of 33 he still has some good years left in him. But that’s not for me to say.

“We’re really happy with our driver line-up and they're signed up as well, they work well together. We’ve got Checo [Perez], who, on a Sunday is as good as anyone. He’s very calculated, very clever, good racer, looks after his tyres.

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“Lance is much younger than Sergio and learning very quickly, but very, very fast. He has great starts, and when he’s in the thick of it, can race really well. And he's learning. I think eventually Lance will overtake Sergio and having that combination of young and experience is perfect for us.”

So has he spoken to Vettel since the news he was leaving Ferrari broke last month?

“Seb and I have been friends for a long time, even before he was a Formula 1 driver I knew him, and ironically he hasn’t called me, so I haven’t had the conversation.”

Listen to Otmar Szafnauer on the latest F1 Nation podcast in the player below, or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.