Sebastian Vettel still can’t believe he had a successful debut season at Ferrari and hopes to challenge dominant Mercedes even more in the next Formula One season starting in March.
“I never believed that my first season at Ferrari would go so well,” Vettel said in an interview on his website.
The four-time world champion Vettel won three races and finished third in the drivers’ standings in his maiden season at the Scuderia behind Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.
Ferrari were also second behind Mercedes in the constructors’ list after some modest past seasons until Vettel joined them from Red Bull.
Vettel praised the “dedication, passion, enthusiasm and fascination of every single employee, but also of the fans for the Ferrari brand”.
“Ferrari is simply a legend,” he said, adding that “the passion for the Ferrari brand is a special inspiration” for him.
The next season starts March 20 in Australia, and the first tests are next week in Barcelona, Spain. Ferrari said yesterday they will launch the new car Friday on their website.
Vettel named the 2015 season a full success but didn’t want to make a prediction for the next campaign.
“Ask a bookie. It is always difficult to make a prediction for an upcoming season but of course we will give it all we have,” he said.
“We know that our package isn’t strong enough to pass Mercedes but we are working on it and we are heading in the right direction.”
Vettel said he was looking forward to his German home Grand Prix at Hockenheim after there was no race in the country last year for financial reasons.
He said that several factors have led to dwindling interest in the sport, ranging from Mercedes’ dominance to complicated rules, and a lack of proper engine sound after a return to turbo-charged V6 engines which had led to plenty of criticism.
“The fan must be able to identify again with the technology in the car, it is much too complex at the moment. In addition, the sound is missing.”

Schumacher exhibition opens in Germany


An exhibition on the motorsport career of Michael Schumacher  opened in Germany yesterday as the record Formula One champion continues his recovery from serious head injuries suffered in a ski accident.
Around 200 guests including Schumacher’s wife, Corinna, and their two children attended the opening of the exhibition in Marburg in the state of Hesse.
“Of course, we miss Michael on days like these,” Schumacher’s manager Sabine Kehm told guests. “Unfortunately we cannot change what has happened.”
Kehm said that all that could be done was to hope and provide support “that he will one day be back again”.
Schumacher, 47, the seven-time F1 world champion, suffered head injuries when he fell on a rock in a skiing accident in Meribel, France on December 29, 2013.
He spent months in an induced coma before being moved from hospital to a rehabilitation clinic in June 2014.
His rehabilitation has continued at home in Switzerland since September that year, but neither Kehm nor his family have given details of his condition.
The exhibition by a long-standing sponsor of the former champion features racing cars from Schumacher’s career as well as exhibits from his private ownership. It is due to run for two years.