Sebastian Vettel snubbed as Schumacher set for Alpine trial

Sebastian Vettel to retire from F1 at end of season

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Sebastian Vettel will not fight it out for Alpine’s 2023 seat in a special test but Mick Schumacher and Nyck de Vries are expected to take part. It is understood Vettel did hold talks with Alpine over a possible 2023 race seat.

The German announced his retirement ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix but has not ruled out making a comeback if an exciting offer was on the table. Speaking at the Italian Grand Prix, Vettel said: “Time will tell what you know, [if there] will be something that is possible to do if there is an offer of any such nature or not.

“Then I will see how I feel like at the moment. I’m quite happy to spend more time on other things and look forward to seeing the kids more and stuff like that. Time will tell whether I get bored within three months or three years or I don’t know.”

Schumacher is battling for his F1 future amid rumours Haas could replace him at the end of the season. Meanwhile, De Vries starred in his F1 debut with Williams at the Italian Grand Prix.

The ex-Formula E driver secured a points finish as a stand-in for Alex Albon as team-mate Nicholas Latifi struggled to P15. Formula Two star Jack Doohan will also take part in the test alongside IndyCar star Colton Herta.

However, Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi has suggested he was after an experienced driver for the seat after losing the services of Fernando Alonso. He explained: “We need to find a driver that’s capable of scoring big points right away.

“This basically leads us towards a more senior driver if you will, but at the same, that is capable to grow with us. So those are the criteria we use at the moment.”

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Rossi also admitted Alpine wanted to make “the right decision” over their driver line-up and stressed there was “no hurry”. Pierre Gasly and Daniel Ricciardo have also been talked about in relation to the Alpine drive but are not expected to take part in the test.

Alpine’s desperate search for a new driver comes after highly-rated rookie Oscar Piastri publicly snubbed the team for McLaren. The FIA’s Contract Recognition Board (CRB) looked at the contracts and sided with McLaren in a double blow for Alpine.

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