Sebastian Vettel Misses Out on $12 Million Career Ending All Because of Daniel Ricciardo

Aston Martin driver Sebastian Vettel gave it his all in the final race of his career. The 4-time champion chased Daniel Ricciardo for P9 till the final lap but was unable to overtake the Australian. As a result, both Aston Martin and Alfa Romeo finished level on points in the WCC. However, it cost the Silverstone team significantly compared to the Swiss outfit.

Alfa Romeo finished P6 in the constructor’s championship due to having the best single result, courtesy of Valtteri Bottas’ superb P5 finish in Imola. If Sebastian Vettel could have pulled off that overtake on McLaren’s Ricciardo, Aston Martin would have got P6 in the championship and subsequently an additional $12 million.

Daniel Ricciardo also leapfrogged Vettel to finish P11 in the WDC. Vettel finished level on points with Ricciardo, but the German missed out on P11 due to the McLaren driver’s P5 finish in Singapore. However, Vettel and Stroll both finished inside points as the Canadian driver finished P8 in the race.

The German legend also questioned Aston Martin’s 1-stop strategy. He believed the Silverstone team threw away the P6 position in constructors. Seb told media personnel, including PlanetF1, “It would have been great for the team to get the sixth in the Constructors’ Championship, but we sort of threw that away with the strategy we chose.”

READ MORE: Red Bull Joins the F1 World To Pay “Best RB Driver of the History” Sebastian Vettel a Heartfelt Tribute

Aston Martin has paired Lance Stroll with a different world champion, Fernando Alonso, for next year. The Spaniard himself enjoyed a poor spell with Alpine this year.

Sebastian Vettel reflects on his 2-years with Aston Martin Racing

After 16 magnificent years in F1, Seb will take his leave from the sport. He was a champion, a leader, and most of all, a decent human who looked out for his fellow drivers and the planet as well. He reflects on his two years spell with the Silverstone-based constructors.

Seb said, “They have been challenging because the car wasn’t as competitive as we hoped. This year, we wanted to make a significant improvement over last year. We failed. We’re currently where we finished last year.”

Vettel further mentioned, “I’m not pointing the finger and saying we did a bad job. I’m just being realistic. We had high hopes, but we fell short.”

Despite Vettel announcing his retirement, fellow F1 drivers believe that Seb will be back. But the former Red Bull driver will now look to spend quality time with his friends and family.

WATCH THIS STORY: Sebastian Vettel on his Last Supper with the entire F1 grid

With a new driver’s lineup, will the Silverstone outfit improve on this year’s P7 finish in the coming season?