Team is embarrassing itself at the moment: Ralf Schumacher slams Aston Martin

Aston Martin, by their own admission, was negatively impacted by this year's changes to the aerodynamic regulations.

Sebastian Vettel (front) has struggled at Aston Martin thus far. (Image: Twitter/@AstonMartinF1)
By Nilavro Ghosh | Oct 19, 2021 | 2 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

Ralf Schumacher believes Aston Martin are ’embarrassing’ themselves with their current performance and are unlikely to improve significantly this season. Aston Martin, by their own admission, was negatively impacted by this year’s changes to the aerodynamic regulations, which primarily impacted them and Mercedes. As a result, they are alone in seventh place in the Constructors’ standings, despite being much closer to sixth-placed AlphaTauri if Sebastian Vettel had not been disqualified from the Hungarian Grand Prix due to a fuel sample issue.

Another tricky moment for Vettel came during the Turkish Grand Prix last time out, when his experiment with slick tyres failed completely, denying the four-time former World Champion and his ninth-placed teammate, Lance Stroll, any chance of scoring points. Despite finishing second in Azerbaijan, Vettel’s season has not gone as planned – but his compatriot, ex-F1 racer Schumacher, places the blame squarely on Aston Martin’s shoulders.

“I refuse to believe Sebastian has embarrassed himself. It’s more the team that is embarrassing itself at the moment,” the former Williams, Jordan, and Toyota driver told Sky Germany. “The package is just not going in the right direction and doesn’t seem to be able to develop, although they have a very close co-operation with Mercedes. Of course, the fact they have taken on a lot of new staff could stand in the way,” he added.

Six races remain in the 2021 season, and while Vettel and Stroll will remain as Aston Martin’s driver line-up for the start of the new era next year, Schumacher does not expect them to provide many highlights for the rest of the season.

‘Don’t think we will see Sebastian in the top 10 very often’

“I don’t think we will see Sebastian in the top 10 very often unless accidents at the start happen like in Budapest,” added the 46-year-old. “They are definitely behind McLaren and Ferrari and even Alpha Tauri are in front, so it will be a tough end of the year for Vettel,” he added.

Schumacher also shared his thoughts on the title race between Mercedes and Red Bull, which, despite Max Verstappen’s six-point lead over Lewis Hamilton in the Drivers’ standings, has shifted in favor of the reigning champions with their car producing more speed of late.

“It could possibly be a tough end to the year for Red Bull too unless they can close the small gap to Mercedes in terms of engine performance,” said Schumacher. “Now it’s important that Red Bull make a step because Mercedes are a bit faster at the moment in terms of the car and the package. In the last two races, Mercedes have become very strong. At the moment, everything speaks for Lewis but Red Bull have certainly not given up,” he concluded.





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