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The Resurgence of a Dying Star

Whenever the F1 circus returns to the streets of Baku, three things are always certain: flat out straights, multiple red flags, and a spectacular drive from Sebastian Vettel. The four time world champion took a trip down memory lane this past weekend, with a drive that earned him a foot on the podium for the first time since Istanbul in 2020. Qualifying 11th on the grid, narrowly missing out to old rival Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas, he climbed nine places and secured Aston Martin’s first points since their Formula One return. However, this isn’t just a flash of brilliance before returning to regularly scheduled mediocrity, but instead is a glimpse of what’s to come. 

With the seemingly limitless resources of Lawrence Stroll behind them, Aston Martin Racing have had some mixed results during their maiden voyage of the 2021 season. Having collected a grand total of 5 points from the first four races, they have managed to bounce back and announce themselves as mid table contenders, collecting a total of 32 points from races in Monaco and Azerbaijan. Between the drivers themselves, young Lance Stroll seemed the more comfortable of the two before heading into Monaco with Seb continuing to struggle. However, a 5th place finish in Monaco and a 2nd in Baku certifies himself as the premier driver in the Aston Martin lineup taking a commanding 38-9 lead in the points battle. Nevertheless, this isn’t the battle Vettel will be concerning himself with. 

After a frustrating six seasons with Ferrari in which he saw the back of Hamilton’s Mercedes more than the chequered flag, a change was necessary just in order to remind people of how great Vettel truly is. In his hay day at Red Bull, he became the youngest F1 World Champion at age 23, won an astonishing 33% of all the races he entered and captured 44 pole positions. In short, it was one of the most dominating periods of racing that F1 had ever seen and he has remained dormant every since. 

Now, I’m not saying that another world championship is on the cards at Aston Martin, but a few race wins certainly might be if Seb can continue the form he has found in the past few races. Let’s face it, if anyone can take the famous racing green back to the top of motorsport, it’s Baby Schumi. 

Sebastian Vettel - grandprix247.com


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