Emmanuel Thomas l with reports from DPA
FRANKFURT – Four-time Formula One, F1 champion Sebastian Vettel doesn’t regret his decision to retire at the end of last season, but won’t want to rule out a return to the sport either.
“If I regretted it now, the decision wouldn’t have been so good. At the moment I’m doing very well. How it will look in half a year, I don’t know. That is part of the journey of discovery that lies ahead of me,” he told broadcasters RTL/ntv.
The former F1 champion admitted, however, that he could “go crazy” in six months to the point that he “can’t stand being on the couch any more and want to drive again. Everything is conceivable at the moment.”
Ahead of the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix on March 5, there were rumours Vettel could have made a comeback after his former Aston Martin team-mate Lance Stroll injured his wrist and missed the pre-season testing in late February.
While Stroll recovered in time for the race, Vettel said that such an early return was never a topic for him.
“When I first heard of it, I wrote a message to Lance wishing him a good recovery,” he said and stressed that replacing Stroll in Bahrain was “not very close” to happening.
To broadcasters Sky Sport, Vettel said he was on the road on a bus and that he “didn’t realize at first what was going on.”
During this two years at Aston Martin, the team struggled to provide Vettel a good car, but this season they have so far secured two podium finishes with veteran Fernando Alonso, who replaced Vettel at the British outfit.
Vettel admitted it was “a bit strange” seeing the car doing so well at first, but added: “The joy for the team, that they have a better car this year, prevails.”
