Vettel: 'Perez deserves to be in a good car'

When it was announced last year that Sebastian Vettel would be leaving Ferrari, there was speculation of a comeback to Red Bull Racing. The German eventually signed for Aston Martin.

Asked if he regrets signing for Aston Martin and if a return to Red Bull was ever a real option, Vettel replied to Motorsport-total.com: "No, I don't regret it. And I don't think it was an option."

The driver decided to "go in a different direction and start a new journey with Aston Martin, a new team. I am very happy about that. And - I mean this sincerely - I am happy with all my heart for Perez that he got this great opportunity because he deserves it."

According to Vettel, Perez has proven his talent. "Not only with the win in Bahrain, but he has already proven over the last ten years that he deserves to be in a good car," he said.

"I am happy for two reasons that Red Bull has such a strong car this year. Firstly, because I still know a lot of people in the team. And secondly because of Perez, because he's finally in a situation where he can come to a race and know that he has a car that he can fight with for victory. He hasn't had that in the past. So I'm happy for him," said the world champion.

It is not officially known how long Vettel's contract at Aston Martin lasts, but the team is improving greatly, as is Vettel himself.