Vettel unlikely to join midfield team in 2021 - Steiner

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Haas boss Guenther Steiner doubts Sebastian Vettel would settle for a seat with a midfield squad should the four-time world champion decide to race on in F1 in 2021.

Vettel's shock exit from Ferrari at the end of the season leaves the German driver with few options for next year.

A plum seat at Mercedes is seen as an outside chance at best for Vettel who has also been linked to Renault as the French team will require a replacement for McLaren-bound Daniel Ricciardo.

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But Steiner doesn't believe Vettel will be lured into joining a team that will likely spend 2021 entrenched in F1's midfield.

"I think Sebastian, being a four-time world champion, I wouldn't say he'd want to go to the midfield anymore," Steiner told Sky F1.

"If you have a successful career, what you don't want to do is to take too many risks.

"I've got a good relationship with him but I haven't offered him a seat. I think somebody else with a lot deeper pockets than me will do that!"

Submitted with the hypothetic possibility of giving Vettel a test to help the team gauge its 2021 car, Steiner said he would jump at the opportunity but doubts Vettel would have any interest.

"Absolutely it would be fantastic to do this," he admitted. "But then just getting in a car after six months out of a car and then (having to) make a decision would be very difficult.

"And then also what we have got is there will be very, very few test days next year, so it’s very difficult.

"Testing like the 2022 car – the hybrid car we are building for next year to go testing with the bigger wheels – would be fantastic," added Steiner.

"But I think it’s difficult to do these things, just jumping in and getting an opinion about it, and I think he would be reluctant to do that as well, because what does it do for him? Not a lot.

"He’s four-time world champion, drove 15 years in Formula 1 and has done it all and won it all, so why would he do that?"

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.