Vettel sits in Ferrari’s 2020 F1 car for the first time

Sebastian Vettel has completed his seat fit in Ferrari’s latest challenger, ahead of the forthcoming 2021 Formula 1 season.

Vettel visited Ferrari’s Maranello headquarters on Friday to conduct his seat fitting ahead of the new campaign as he familiarised himself with the team’s new-for-2020 car, which is currently being dubbed as 'project 671'.

The German spent the morning in Maranello and held the standard pre-season meetings with engineers and Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto looking ahead to 2020.

Ferrari hopes its 2020 F1 car will finally knock Mercedes off its perch and end the German manufacturer’s current spell of dominance, having claimed every title on offer throughout the V6 hybrid era which began in 2014.

The Scuderia made impressive gains in 2019, particularly with its power unit development, but still fell short in both world championships after struggling to get to grips with its fast yet complex SF90 design.

Ferrari could already be on the back foot heading into 2020, with recent reports in Italian and German media suggesting that its latest challenger has failed to meet expectations from early wind tunnel data.

AutoBild claimed sources within Ferrari have confirmed to the German publication that Ferrari’s 2020 car is “worse than expected” and could have an aerodynamic flaw which is yet to be understood.

Entering his sixth year at Ferrari, Vettel will be hoping to underline his position at the team having been beaten by new teammate Charles Leclerc during the Monegasque’s first season at Maranello.

The four-time world champion finished 24 points behind Leclerc in fifth place in the 2019 championship and is starting the final year of his Ferrari contract.