Vettel leaves Red Bull, Kvyat promoted

[airshifter]

Vettel leaving Red Bull just doesn't seem right, much like Alonso leaving Ferrari. It's going to be a bizarre off-season.

Agree on both counts. The RB is actually a fairly strong car this year and going anywhere could be risky for Seb. And though I can't for a second question why Alonso is leaving Ferrari, it's a shame they didn't produce on their end of the deal. Fernando has that passion and drive that fit Ferrari perfectly, he just doesn't have the car.

[dj_bytedisaster]

Agree on both counts. The RB is actually a fairly strong car this year and going anywhere could be risky for Seb. And though I can't for a second question why Alonso is leaving Ferrari, it's a shame they didn't produce on their end of the deal. Fernando has that passion and drive that fit Ferrari perfectly, he just doesn't have the car.

The thing is, RB has "shiny object syndrome". When Seb came in in 2009 and gave them their first win (after doing the same for the B team the year before), all flocked around him and Webber's car was a mere afterthought. The same thing happened this year. Danny Ricciardo came in, was better than expected, while Vettel struggled to adapt to the car and was immediately relegated to team mascot while everyone flocked around RIC. The most telling detail was that Danny got to drive both days at the first in-season test. Not only was RB the only top team to not run both drivers IIRC, for Vettel, who needed track time more than anything at that point, it was a slap in the face with a wet fish. And it's been downhill from there.
He would have won Canada had the team not messed up the strategy. They acknwledged that and apologized for it, but it doesn't change the fact that Danny inherited the win and Vettel ended up being ridiculed by the mob in the cheap seats. Without him being shafted by the safety car in Hungary, we could just as well talk about a 2-1 win ratio right now. He was ahead of RIC there too until the SC.
I think his leaving has three reasons. First, he lost the trust in the team and doesn't want to end up like Webber. Second, many people who were part of his winning ways (Newey, Rocky, Handkammer, Prodomou) are gone or promoted out of the way. Third, there is an opening at another top team (most likely Ferrari) that might not be there next year, so he takes the opportunity.

After six years he wanted to do something else. It's legitimate and something people have demanded of him for years. Now that he does it, they say he runs away. Seriously, if he could walk on water, people would say 'look, the bugger can't even swim'.

As for Fernando - he didn't leave Ferrari, he was sacked. He doesn't get along with Marchione and Matiacchi, as both don't like him much. It was reported that he had a talk with Matiacchi in Suzuka and stormed out of it calling the boss some unprintable names. Twenty-four hours later Seb announces he's leaving Red Bull. You do the math.

I think Vettel is the correct man for Ferrari. He works pretty much like his childhood hero - Schumacher. And the two previous strong era's of Ferrari were with Lauda and Schumacher. Maybe they need some teutonic element among all that mediterranean passion. I wouldn't be surprised to see Dominicali come back, too. It was reportedly tension with Alonso that pushed him out. Fernando is a helluva driver, most likely the best there is, but he's an egomaniac and a lousy team leader.

[Zico]

Interesting view from Maurice Hamilton, who suggests it could be Alonso and Vettel at McLaren next year. He made the point that only Horner said Vettel was going to Ferrari, not Vettel or Ferrari.
McLaren must now be the best funded of the non manufacturer teams thanks to the Honda partnership and they could no doubt afford both Alonso and Vettel. I just can't see it though, Vettel signing up to play second fiddle to Alonso? Nah, that I think that would be a bad move seeing as he has clearly found Ricciardo to be more than a match for him.

[TheFamousEccles]

After six years he wanted to do something else. It's legitimate and something people have demanded of him for years. Now that he does it, they say he runs away. Seriously, if he could walk on water, people would say 'look, the bugger can't even swim'.

I couldn't agree more.

[zako85]

If we buy into the story that RBR is now favoring young blood more, it's still very hard to understand Vettel's utter lack of motivation and fighting spirit, both on the track and within the team. He didn't even make it into Q3 on Saturday. His said in interview that they were slow, and that's that. Possibly a problem with rear axle. No excuses...

I just don't get it. Shouldn't have Vettel with all his experience know how get the team to setup the car right?

[Tazio]

zak' Seb is just a footnote, try to top the bomb that fred and his "people" are going to drop on F1..............................................ma te!!!

[jens]

If we buy into the story that RBR is now favoring young blood more, it's still very hard to understand Vettel's utter lack of motivation and fighting spirit, both on the track and within the team. He didn't even make it into Q3 on Saturday. His said in interview that they were slow, and that's that. Possibly a problem with rear axle. No excuses...

I just don't get it. Shouldn't have Vettel with all his experience know how get the team to setup the car right?

I guess he can't wait for the season to end at this stage now... It must be a unique situation for him. For the first time ever he has nothing to fight for at the end of the season - Mercedes is well out of reach, Ricciardo is also well ahead in points. Also he is leaving the team. Must be demoralizing.

[jens]

Agree on both counts. The RB is actually a fairly strong car this year and going anywhere could be risky for Seb.

If you argue rationally, you may indeed reach that conclusion. But Vettel doesn't argue rationally, he follows his heart and wants to "spice up his life" with new things. I think we should all try to recall our own life experiences and find that once comes a time, when we can have enough/got bored of some things, even if before reaching that "limit" we thought they were pretty good!

I remember already in 2010 I thought that Hamilton leaving McLaren may happen a few years later. For the last few years I have thought it is only a matter of time before Vettel leaves Red Bull. I am a big believer that a top driver usually likes to change athmosphere. It doesn't mean they are going to do it all the time, i.e Hamilton now moving away from Mercedes, but they feel they need to make a significant change at least once. But Hamilton and Vettel have made one big change in their careers, and I believe both are happy to have made it to move away from their "youthhood homes" and experience different lives.

There are a few exceptions, like Mika Häkkinen. Partly because he had to wait for his success for so many years that when he finally got it it was really enjoyable and there was no need for crazy career changes any more, when he was above 30 already. And partly because of his character and upbringing - he didn't "grow up" with McLaren, he joined them later, and once he lost motivation, he decided to leave F1 altogether instead of joining another team.

So in short - give a few more years and Ricciardo will start looking at what to do beyond Red Bull. He will likely be gone from the Red Bull family by the year of 2020 at the very latest.

----

Motivation in a racing driver is a complicated thing. I don't think it is reflected on the circuit itself, because I believe racing is what they instinctively like to do and when they go wheel-to-wheel with anybody, they like to fight hard. Doesn't matter if you are going to leave the team or which car you drive, battling with rivals and driving the car is still the same thing!

However, I think motivation aspect comes in behind the scenes, perhaps in more mundane aspects of the job of a racing driver - preparing for a weekend, working with the team on the car, etc. I think de-motivated drivers are more prone to having "setup issues", because their heart is not so much in trying to fine-tune all the details till late hours. I remember in the past years Vettel was credited by some insiders for working late hours to try to get a perfect car.

They are obviously all professionals, so I don't think they'd now suddenly skip working on the car altogether and lazily sit around the garage all day. But perhaps it can be interpreted in such way that they don't put in that extra 12th hour at the expense of free time!

[Ranger]

More importantly, are any technical and executive staff moving to Ferrari?

Changing one driver will not change their fortunes.

Vettel might get lucky like Hamilton did when he moved to Mercedes but I'm not sure.

[Bezza]

This is the strangest “silly season” I can remember.

Vettel announces he is leaving Red Bull
It is reported but not confirmed that he is going to Ferrari
It is reported but not confirmed that Alonso’s contract has been cancelled with Ferrari

McLaren are key to this mess, and it is really intriguing. I can’t quite work it all out to be honest!

My guesses would be, a lot of musical chairs and someone significant without a seat!

Mercedes – Hamilton & Rosberg
Red Bull – Ricciardo & Kyvat
Ferrari – Vettel & Raikkonen
Williams – Bottas & Button
McLaren – Alonso & Magnussen

The surprise there is Button to Williams. But if he leaves McLaren, at a similar age to Massa and lets be honest he is a much better driver, then Williams would be silly not to hire him. They could have been much closer to 2nd in the constructors this season if Button was reliably bringing the car home, rather than Massa’s many crashes and mistakes.