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Sebastian Vettel in a recent interview with Martin Brundle hinted that he might be making his way back to the sport in the future if the itch is still there.
The German retired from the sport last season. A four-time world champion, his name features prominently in a lot of the all-time lists. He has got more than 50 wins and pole positions and in terms of achievements, there are only a handful of drivers in history ahead of him.
As a talent, Vettel belongs to the elite category, and even in the last few races of his career, he made sure that he showed it with Aston Martin as well. Having said that, when it comes to F1 returns, while it would be nice to see him back in racing overalls, it will be a bad idea.
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The last decade or so has featured quite a few drivers who have shown that a break from the sport and then coming back is something that can work. Elite-level talents like Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen are some of the examples of drivers who made it back to the sport and were almost instantly back to the top-tier level of performance.
On the other hand, there was the case of Michael Schumacher as well, who took a three-year break from racing and then came back. He, however, was not able to match the elite levels of performance he had earlier in his career as he retired after a three-year stint.
When we talk about Sebastian Vettel we talk about a driver that is loved by everyone up and down the grid. His return will surely have a feel-good feeling attached to it. Will the return however be a good idea? I fear not.
Sebastian Vettel has taken time off from racing
One of the major attributes of success for both Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso on their return was the fact that the two did not stop racing during their sabbatical from the sport.
Alonso competed in WEC and won the title there while Raikkonen took part in rallying and NASCAR before circling back to F1. Sebastian Vettel, on the other hand, has taken a step back from racing altogether. He's not racing in any category.
He's not competing in Formula E or IndyCar or any other series. He's focusing on stuff away from all of this. During the F1 Japanese GP weekend, Vettel will be building Bee-Hives, a project he's been very committed to.
F1 is a demanding sport, it needs dedication, effort, and continuous commitment. It's not something that you can take off from and come back to find yourself on the same level again.
If Vettel is interested, he might need to commit himself in a major way to racing. That is something he's not really doing right now.
He'll have to start in the midfield (or worse)
Sebastian Vettel left the sport last season because he was not interested in driving around for insignificant positions. He had done that for a few years now and after so many years of challenging at the front with Red Bull and Ferrari, this was almost a disappointment.
When/If he comes back to F1, he's not coming back to a Red Bull or Mercedes or any of these top teams. In all likelihood, the path back will involve a promising project that begins in the midfield.
Will something like that even get the competitive juices flowing for him? That is an intriguing question we don't have an answer to.
How hungry is he after so much success?
Many people discredit Vettel's career after the lean period he had with Ferrari and Aston Martin. If we look back at Sebastian Vettel's career and his records then these rival the best of talents to ever race an F1 car.
Sebastian Vettel is a 4-time world champion! The only drivers that won more were Michael Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton, and Juan Manuel Fangio. He's got more than 50 wins in his career and once again there's only a handful that have done better.
When we talk about a driver racing in his late 30s, the talk of him slowing down is a result of him not being committed to racing as much as he used to be earlier in his career. The reason why Fernando Alonso is still so motivated is because of the lack of success that gives his career validation. The reason why Lewis Hamilton continues to be subliminal is because of the pursuit of that eighth title.
What is Sebastian Vettel's hunger? Is he willing to go 100 percent once again? It's just hard to predict especially since he pivoted to an entirely different interest field. He's focused on sustainability and environmental preservation. Pivoting from that back to being the beast that ruthlessly dominated the sport with nine consecutive wins is a tough ask.
Conclusion
All in all, the decision will lie with Sebastian but for a driver who had a beautiful farewell to his career, coming back and being unable to add to his already impressive legacy is a tough ask.
As a Sebastian Vettel fan, I will be happy to see him back but at the same time do I think it will be a good decision for his legacy? Probably not.
