Barcelona (dpa) – For the four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel, a start at the Russian Grand Prix this year is out of the question after the country’s military attacks on Ukraine.
“My opinion is that I shouldn’t go there and I won’t either. I think it’s wrong to drive in this country,” said the 34-year-old Hesse on the sidelines of the test drives in Barcelona and confirmed: “My decision has already been made fixed.”
The Russian Grand Prix is scheduled for September 25 in Sochi. Competing there is not an option for Vettel. “I am very sorry for the innocent people who lose their lives and are killed for stupid reasons and because of weird and crazy leadership,” said the Aston Martin driver. When he woke up on Thursday morning and found out about the invasion, he was “shocked”: “I think it’s horrible to see what happened.”
It is still unclear how the Black Sea Grand Prix will be handled. Formula 1 had already announced that it was “not making any further comments on the race planned for September at this time”, it said on Thursday: “We will continue to monitor the situation very closely.” World champion Max Verstappen was also not very enthusiastic about the Grand Prix, but did not immediately rule out his participation: “We shouldn’t drive in a country that’s at war, but the entire paddock should decide about it.”
Since 2014, the Black Sea resort of Sochi, where the Winter Olympics took place in the same year, has been used. The last Formula 1 race is supposed to take place in 2022. The move to the gates of St. Petersburg is planned from 2023.