Sebastian Vettel rues 'scrappy' Monaco GP practice for Ferrari
Sebastian Vettel described Ferrari's first day of practice ahead of Formula 1's Monaco Grand Prix as "scrappy" after he and Kimi Raikkonen struggled on Thursday

Raikkonen was the quicker of the two Ferrari drivers in practice two, but he was seventh and 1.4 seconds off the pace, behind both Mercedes, Red Bulls and Toro Rossos.
Vettel was only ninth quickest and twice hit the barriers, damaging a rear wing and a wheel-rim in accidents at Mirabeau and Ste Devote respectively.
"Overall it was a bit of a scrappy day," Vettel told reporters afterwards.
"It's OK, the pace is in the car - I struggled a bit to get it out.
"I certainly tried a lot. Not everything worked."
Vettel admitted he did not have his best day in the car either, but he feels Thursday's running was not a true representation of Ferrari's competitiveness.
"All in all it was not a clean day in the office," he said.
"I didn't get the rhythm, I didn't get good laps on the ultra-soft [tyre].
"In the end it's my fault if I go in too deep and touch the barrier.
"Yes we could have done a better job, I could have done a better job, but that's how it goes sometimes.
"It's fair to say that just inside the top 10 is not where we belong and the car is a lot quicker than that.
"For today it was not the main focus to be high up - the running we had was a bit scrappy.
"Saturday is when it matters - qualifying is very important around here. There's a lot of stuff we learned today."
RAIKKONEN HITS OUT
Raikkonen was relaxed about Ferrari's fortunes, but he did not respond well to negative questioning about a difficult day of practice.
"You put it like it's a massive issue, but people make mistakes, that's fine in practice," he told TV crews post-session.
"I don't understand how you try to make a massive...it's crazy questions.
"It's practice, it's not ideal, but how many [ideal sessions] have there been?
"It is what it is. There's still a lot to improve and hopefully we can improve it.
"Obviously there is some work to do but it was better this afternoon than this morning so we improved."

Previous article
Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo dominates Monaco Grand Prix practice
Next article
Monaco Grand Prix: Red Bull can stay ahead of Mercedes - Ricciardo

About this article
Series | Formula 1 |
Drivers | Sebastian Vettel |
Teams | Ferrari |
Author | Lawrence Barretto |
Sebastian Vettel rues 'scrappy' Monaco GP practice for Ferrari
Trending
Albert Park Circuit Modifications Project
Mercedes-AMG F1 Team: Bahrain GP Race Debrief
The delay that quashed Aston Martin’s last F1 venture
Aston Martin’s only previous foray into Formula 1 in the late 1950s was a short-lived and unsuccessful affair. But it could have been so different, says NIGEL ROEBUCK
Verstappen exclusive: Why lack of car-racing titles won't hurt Red Bull's ace
Max Verstappen’s star quality in Formula 1 is clear. Now equipped with a Red Bull car that is, right now, the world title favourite and the experience to support his talent, could 2021 be the Dutchman’s year to topple the dominant force of Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes?
Are we at peak F1 right now?
For many, many years Formula 1 has strived to do and to be better on all fronts. With close competition, a growing fanbase, a stable political landscape and rules in place to encourage sustainability, 2021 is on course to provide an unexpected peak
How crucial marginal calls will decide the Red Bull vs Mercedes battle in F1 2021
The longer Red Bull can maintain a performance edge over Mercedes, the better the odds will be in the team’s favour against the defending world champions. But as the Bahrain Grand Prix showed, many more factors will be critical in the outcome of the 2021 Formula 1 World Championship
How Williams’ new structure adheres to a growing F1 trend
Williams held out against the tide for many years but, as MARK GALLAGHER explains, the age of the owner-manager is long gone
When a journeyman driver's F1 career lasted just 800m
Nikita Mazepin’s Formula 1 debut at the Bahrain Grand Prix lasted mere corners before he wiped himself out in a shunt, but his financial backing affords him a full season. Back in 1993 though, Marco Apicella was an F1 driver for just 800m before a first corner fracas ended his career. Here’s the story of his very short time at motorsport’s pinnacle
The nightmare timing that now hinders Mercedes
Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton took victory at the Bahrain Grand Prix despite, for a change, not having the quickest car. But any hopes of developing its W12 to surpass Red Bull's RB16B in terms of outright speed could not have come at a worse time.
How Raikkonen's rapid rise stalled his team-mate's F1 career climb
Kimi Raikkonen’s emergence as a Formula 1 star in his rookie campaign remains one of the legendary storylines from 2001, but his exploits had an unwanted impact on his Sauber team-mate’s own prospects. Twenty years on from his first F1 podium at the Brazilian GP, here’s how Nick Heidfeld’s career was chilled by the Iceman