George Russell believes that Sebastian Vettel’s best legacy is as a human being in the paddock and an icon in the sport. Answering Sportskeeda’s question in a press conference ahead of the Hungarian GP, the Mercedes driver felt that the four-time world champion will leave behind a huge legacy when he retires from the sport at the end of the 2022 season.
When asked by Sportskeeda if there was a part of the German’s legacy they would like to take up, Russell said:
“Pretty impressed with the beard he’s got going at the moment. I struggle a bit to grow a beard. As I said, I think, you know, we’re all competitive animals, we all want to win, we all want to win as many championships as possible, but as I said, nobody’s got a bad word to say about Seb in the paddock and I think that’s probably a legacy you’d probably be quite… He’s probably more proud of that than he is of his of his on track successes.”
Adding to the humor, Max Verstappen chimed in:
“His hair. It grew back magically. I like that. I wish I had that.”
Russell revealed that Sebastian Vettel does not have any naysayers in the paddock. According to the Briton, that is a legacy that the German is probably more proud of than his success as a driver.
Yuki Tsunoda, on the other hand, felt he would like to update his knowledge about cars and emulate the German champion’s meticulousness about technicalities. He said:
“Like knowledge about the car I think. He knows about the car, opposite of me! So probably those things.”
Carlos Sainz and Lance Stroll feel Sebastian Vettel leaves behind a great legacy as a human being
Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz said that there is plenty he would like to emulate from Sebastian Vettel’s career. The Spaniard felt that the four-time world champion had a historic career and great legacy as an individual in the sport. Lauding Vettel as a thorough gentleman and an incredible person, Lance Stroll believes his teammate has contributed a significant amount to the sport.
Praising the many qualities of Sebastian Vettel, Sainz said:
“I don’t know, it’s many things, mainly as a human being, a lot, for sure, of his legacy that he’s left in the paddock, of his career, you could argue pole to win conversion, speed. I think he’s always been great, so I don’t know, many things I could take from Seb, many stats, many, many things. It’s a pretty idyllic career.”
Praising the German, his Aston Martin teammate Stroll said:
“His success on track and you know the fact that he’s a great person off track. He is, you know, a real gentleman and he’s done a lot for the sport and his success on track has been incredible over the years.”
Lewis Hamilton was moved by Sebastian Vettel’s retirement announcement and felt that he had lost an ally in the sport. The Briton hopes that the younger generation of drivers will look up to the German’s legacy as a sportsman and individual.