“I know part of the team, I know some members of the team quite well from my past and for a long time, so I think it’s obviously a good opportunity for them this year to have a good car to fight with and try and improve from there.”
With Racing Point looking competitive this season and support from Aston Martin arriving next year, Vettel could well be attracted by the team’s potential.
It was only in 2018 that the team – then known as Force India – was forced into administration by Perez, which resulted in a Lawrence Stroll-led rescue.
At 33, Vettel is almost six years younger than the returning Fernando Alonso, with the potential to race beyond the introduction of new F1 regulations in 2022.
The current Ferrari driver made clear that he had not expected to be left out in the cold, revealing no contract offer to extend his stay with the team alongside Charles Leclerc.
He has said that talks had taken place with Renault before Fernando Alonso’s appointment was confirmed though discussions had been in a very early phase with the French team.
With the top two seats in F1 out of reach, interesting prospects in Renault and McLaren now spoken for and the lack of desire to simply partake in F1, without any prospect of success the Racing Point situation might be Vettel’s only real option for 2021.