‘Highly strung’ Sebastian Vettel cannot afford many more slip-ups in Formula One title race

Vettel's remarks after the China Grand Prix probably highlights the pressure he is under, as he knows that while Ferrari are not quite a match for Mercedes just yet on raw pace, they are not far off, writes Graham Caygill.

The good thing for Sebastian Vettel is that there are still 18 races to go, starting with Russia on Sunday, and Sochi, with its long straights should give a better indicator of just where Ferrari are Show more

One of the best developments to come out of Formula One's television coverage is the chance to hear excerpts from the pit radio between drivers and teams.

It can be a great opportunity to hear the thoughts of the driver, who can sometimes sound laconic as they give feedback to their engineers that it sounds like they are on a casual Sunday drive rather than racing at speeds of more than 300kph.

But one driver who certainly did not sound calm in China two weeks ago was Sebastian Vettel.

The four-time world champion collided with Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen at the first turn after the start, with the German being caught out by having Daniil Kvyat's Red Bull Racing car coming down his inside, leading him to steer into Raikkonen.

The incident dropped Vettel down the order, while Raikkonen was forced to pit with a broken front wing, shattering the team's hopes of pushing Mercedes-GP for the win.

Read more from Graham Caygill: Ferrari and Red Bull have raised their game, but Mercedes still dominant force

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Vettel was quickly on the pit radio, apologising to the team and Raikkonen, and blaming Kvyat for driving like “a madman”.

Afterwards he confronted the Russian in the room the drivers were waiting in before heading to the podium, and he was heard to say to the Red Bull man “If I don’t go left, you crash into us and we all three go out – you are like a torpedo”.

The exchange was fascinating as it showed just how tense and highly strung Vettel is right now.

The crash had been a racing incident, with no-one at fault. Raikkonen had out-braked himself, sliding wide, and that had baulked Vettel briefly, while giving Kvyat the space to attempt to go down the inside as the track curved right.

Kvyat was well in his rights to do that. Vettel was caught unaware, but surely must have known that given it is Lap 1 and that there are 22 cars on grid, that a space like that would be filled quickly.

It was a huge over reaction by Vettel, surprising given he still finished second, which was realistically as good as could be expected given just how clear the Mercedes of Nico Rosberg was at the front.

It probably highlights the pressure he is under, as he knows that while Ferrari are not quite a match for Mercedes just yet on raw pace, they are not far off, and with developments still to come there is no reason why it will stay that way between now and the season climaxing at the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in November.

The Ferrari is quick enough that Vettel would have won in Australia had it not been for the race stoppage that led to them getting their tyre strategy wrong, gifting the advantage to Rosberg.

Bahrain we will never know as his engine let go on the warm-up lap, but Ferrari were quick there as Raikkonen recovered from an abysmal start to get close enough to Rosberg to force the Mercedes team to adjust their strategy mid-race to cover him.

Vettel is quicker than Raikkonen so if the Finn could be a threat to the Mercedes then what could the German have done in Sakhir?

China was good damage limitation, but Vettel would have seen it as another wasted chance, hence his agitation with Kvyat the fall guy, who impressively held his ground in the verbal attack from the Ferrari man and refused to be intimidated.

Vettel’s inner anguish will be over the fact that he and Ferrari have failed to capitalise on the problems afflicting world champion Lewis Hamilton.

Hamilton has had a torrid start to the season, with a bad start in Australia, a collision with Valtteri Bottas in Bahrain, and starting from the back of the grid in China making his life very difficult.

The Briton will still be the man that Vettel fears most, despite Rosberg having won all three races so far in the campaign, given that Hamilton, when he has been trouble free, has consistently over the past three and a bit seasons at Mercedes been the quicker driver.

If you had offered Vettel the chance to be only six points behind Hamilton in the drivers’ standings after three races, given the Mercedes still has its edge on speed, the German would have taken it for sure.

But, knowing how trouble-filled Hamilton’s season has been, it has been a huge missed chance to get a lead over the world champion.

Rosberg has not put a wheel wrong so far, but all three victories have come in situations in which both Vettel and Hamilton have had bad luck.

The good thing for Vettel is that there are still 18 races to go, starting with Russia on Sunday, and Sochi, with its long straights should give a better indicator of just where Ferrari are speed wise compared to their German rivals.

But, he knows he cannot afford many more slip-ups. He is 42 points behind Rosberg already, and if those dreams of a fifth drivers’ title, and a first for Ferrari, are to come true this year, he cannot afford that gap to grow much further.

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