Mike Krack: Aston Martin must convince Vettel of its potential for him to stay

 

Krack started work at Aston Martin this week after serving out his notice with BMW, his previous employer.

The team is undergoing a management restructuring while also building a new campus adjacent to the existing factory.

Krack worked closely with Vettel when he first arrived in F1 with BMW Sauber as a test and reserve driver in 2006, and thus knows him well.

The German is currently only committed to the team for the 2022 season.

“It's clear that a guy like Sebastian, a four-time world champion, he does not want to be 15th or 12th or P8,” said Krack. “That's clear. It is our task to deliver a performing car, or let’s say performing structure, because I think Sebastian is a clever guy.

“So he will not be focusing just on this year's car or whatever, but focusing more on what is happening, and if he sees the potential.

“So if we can manage to offer this to him, I think we have a chance to keep him for longer.

"To be honest with you, I have not spoken with him about it. This is something that will have to come, obviously. 

"But all in all, it is our task to deliver the right package, then Sebastian will stay and other drivers would like to join."

Krack stressed that Vettel is a huge asset for the Silverstone-based team.

"Let's put it like this, Sebastian first of all is a very nice guy,” he said. “So he manages to surround the team around him, not by being nice all the time, but being respectful. This is an ethic that I share, largely. So that's also one of the reasons I think why we get along very well.

“But then, compared to when I knew him last he is now a four-time world champion, he has accrued a huge amount of experience. And he is a clever guy.

“That is also why he manages to combine this experience channelling in the right way, and not saying just in the past I had this or in the past I had this, but he knows exactly what he needs to go faster.

“So from that point of view it's great to have him, because also he can steer us as a team also in our development."

Krack revealed that despite their past relationship he didn’t speak to Vettel before accepting the Aston job, in part because he was subject to the confidentiality of the discussions he was having with the team’s top management.

"I have not been in touch with Seb before because I did not want to get biassed with just one opinion, or whatever,” he said.

“And also, I have to say these discussions, they are very, very confidential. You must not talk to anyone about these things when you are in negotiation.

“And the companies are very, very strict about this, and this is also rightly so because otherwise, immediately you have what you have in football, that you have all these rumours about people moving and people going here or there.

“So from that point of view, I strictly stuck to what we had agreed in terms of confidentiality.”

He added: “I do not know what happened in the background between Seb and the team about me. Maybe they asked him or maybe not. This I cannot really comment on. Fact is that I had not spoken to Sebastian before, not about this topic."

Krack said that since taking the job he’s already been able to rekindle his relationship with the German.

"When Sebastian ran the first time in Turkey in the third car, I was his race engineer. So this obviously put maybe a bit of a special link between himself and myself. Also, last week, he said do you remember Istanbul? I think we have a very good relationship.

“We have not been in touch so much over the years after I had left F1. But when we met again, it was like we have we have seen ourselves yesterday. So it was very, very good to catch up.

“Now we have a lot of stories to exchange, not only about racing, but also about family, about kids and stuff like that. But the discussions that I'm having with him are always extending on from what we had in the past. 

"So we were very, very close in the past, and I have the feeling we have been very close now again."