Vettel plays down Ferrari pace: "Mercedes is quicker"

Ahead of this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix, Championship Leader Sebastian Vettel says that his Ferrari team are a way off Mercedes in terms of raw pace and still believes Mercedes are the team to beat in 2018.

The German won the Australian Grand Prix in rather fortunate circumstances, taking advantage of a Virtual Safety Car to gain an advantage over his rivals through the pit stop phase.

Vettel himself admits that he was “lucky” in inheriting the race lead and going on to claim the maximum 25 points.

Vettel said: “We have enough clever people to know that we’re not quick enough yet.

Sebastian Vettel finished fourth in FP1, ahead of title rival Lewis Hamilton in what is expected to be the closest Grand Prix in a long time, with Red Bull also looking in good shape ahead of the race at the Bahrain International Circuit.