Vettel: No problem between myself and Leclerc

Sebastian Vettel says there is no problem between himself and Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc following their clash at the Brazilian Grand Prix, believing talk of any tension is nothing more than outside hype.

Vettel and Leclerc collided while battling for fourth place at Interlagos two weeks ago, causing both drivers to retire with five laps remaining in the race.

The incident was labelled “silly” by Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto, who held talks with both drivers at Maranello to discuss what happened ahead of the season finale in Abu Dhabi.

Leclerc said on Thursday that both Ferrari drivers remained free to race, while Binotto refused to be drawn on the discussions, wishing to keep them private.

Speaking to the media for the first time in Abu Dhabi on Friday after missing Thursday’s duties, Vettel stressed the relationship with Leclerc remained good.

“Obviously it’s unfortunate what happened, and we want to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Vettel said. “That’s clear. That’s the most important [thing].

“The key for me is that we get along, we don’t have a problem with each other. I know that the outside tries to hype this a little bit, but actually there’s nothing to worry about from the inside.

“I think the lesson is that if we race each other than we need to give each other in that regard more room to make sure that we don’t touch.

“It was a very little touch, but the touch led to a result.”

The incident ended Vettel's hopes of finishing third in the drivers' championship this year, while Leclerc needs to outscore Max Verstappen by 12 points if he is to overhaul the Dutchman in Abu Dhabi this weekend.