Vettel urges Ferrari to improve qualifying-form

Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel has urged his team to improve their form in qualifying, as the team has been nowhere near Mercedes on Saturdays ever since Singapore, when Lewis Hamilton stole pole position.

Updates that were implemented on the Ferrari for the Singapore Grand Prix have actually had a negative effect, as Auto Motor und Sport already reported yesterday that the Italians lost over half a second in the Asian metropole. Vettel knows that to have a chance on a Sunday at a Grand Prix, you need to be at your best on Saturday.

"If you don't deliver on Saturday, you can pay the prize for that on Sunday," the 30-year-old explained to Motorsport-Total.

"We've seen multiple times now that we're lacking on Saturday and therefore lost out in the race itself.

"We have to shift the focus to improve the tempo on Saturdays, because we can't change the results we've already had."

With Hamilton and Mercedes already having the opportunity to seal both championships this weekend at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Vettel knows that Ferrari will have to be at its very best if they want to prolong the season a little more. Especially as it's one of Hamilton's favourite circuits.

"Only look ahead and prevent that we make the same mistake in the future, that's useful.

"Next Saturday, we'll really have to do better so we can have a chance on Sunday."

A lot of calendar-talk there from the German, rather than just saying 'qualifying' and 'Grand Prix'. Still, his point is a very valid one, but the four-time champion will also have to eliminate the mistakes from his own races, as it has cost him on multiple occasions this season.