Charles Leclerc blamed for Sebastian Vettel problem as Lewis Hamilton ego claim made
SEBASTIAN VETTEL is “suffering” at Ferrari because he is constantly under pressure from team-mate Charles Leclerc, according to former F1 driver Gerhard Berger.
F1: Sebastian Vettel addresses Charles Leclerc swap
Vettel has not added to his four World Championships since moving to Ferrari in 2015.
This season the German has often been outperformed by his new, younger team-mate Leclerc.
And the internal pressure is so much that it is causing Vettel to make silly mistakes.
"Vettel needs to feel at home, to live in a relaxed atmosphere,” Berger told La Gazzeta dello Sport.
"He is suffering and cannot give 110 per cent, as happened when he was with [Daniel] Ricciardo when he then left Red Bull."
Regardless of what Vettel does at Ferrari, he will still go down as one of the greatest drivers of his generation.
His arch-rival Lewis Hamilton is closing in on equaling Michael Schumacher’s all-time record of seven.
But Berger thinks Vettel is more comparable to the German legend.
"Lewis has a super ego, before leaving Mercedes he wants to match Schumacher with seven titles," he added.
"He is the pilot that most reminds me of [Ayrton] Senna.
"Seb is a hard worker like Schumacher, but compared to Michael he lacks the ability to direct the team, to ask for the hiring of key men.
"But now he is 100 per cent focused to prove that he is still the number one [at Ferrari]."
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Meanwhile, Gerhard Berger is confident Mattia Binotto can turn around Ferrari’s fortunes.
“After the departure of Montezemolo and Domenicali, Ferrari changed – it was no longer the team I knew,” he said.
“With Binotto in charge Ferrari has rediscovered its DNA, but these things take time, they need to stabalize.”