Formula One fans want to see four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel lose to make Grand Prix races more appealing, Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone said in an interview on Wednesday.
“Many people want to see Vettel lose because it would finally make it (the World Drivers’ Championship) more exciting again,” the 83-year-old Ecclestone told German daily Bild.
The 26-year-old Vettel is looking to win his fifth straight world title when the season starts with the Australian Grand Prix on March 16.
The German was booed at some races last season when he won 13 of the 19 races.
Vettel endured a tough final testing session in Bahrain last weekend when there were problems with the new Red Bull car.
The German failed to complete a single lap in testing on Saturday due to electrical issues and problems with the car’s Renault engine.
Williams’ Felipe Massa posted the fastest time, clocking 1min 33.258secs, closely followed by Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, who was just 0.06 seconds behind, while Vettel came in 18th-fastest overall with team-mate Daniel Ricciardo tenth.
Vettel blamed the new Renault engine for his woes, but Ecclestone refuted those claims, saying: “after all it allowed him to win the championship for the last four years.”