Formula 1 legend Alain Prost is of the opinion that Sebastian Vettel has been sorely affected by speculation surrounding his future. According to the Frenchman, Vettel’s driving is evidence of the rumours, which only grow stronger with every poor performance.

In the 2019 championship, Vettel is three places and 100 points behind arch-rival Lewis Hamilton. This gap has come about as the championship reaches the halfway stagewith both Vettel and Ferrari supposedly one of the title favourites.

Unfortunately, the SF90 has not proven itself in race conditions and Vettel’s efforts have been riddled with countless errors. That alone has seen his title challenge against Hamilton last year fizzle out and is threatening to do so again this time.

Sebastian Vettel’s future has come under intense scrutiny, especially after his lambasting of modern F1. His anger bubbled in the aftermath of having victory in Canada cruelly snatched away by the stewards. This prompted suggestions that he could be ready to quit the sport, in spite of him insisting otherwise.

The 32-year-old has affirmed that he will still be in the sport until the at least the 2020 season. However, evidence of waning powers at the wheel were on show at the British GP last weekend. Especially when he lost the plot and speared into Max Verstappen, possibly costing both a podium.

“His incident [with Verstappen at Silverstone] is a lack of judgement on his part,” Alain Prost told Canal Plus.

“We see that he is not completely at his best, he has just been overtaken, and tries to retake his position just after that.

“It is still a manoeuvre that is a little difficult, a little daring.

“This may be due to a lack of concentration, motivation, judgement. That’s it. Overall, it’s not great.

“In addition, there is the pressure of whether he will stop or not [retire at the end of the season], rumours left and right [about his future in F1]. Very sincerely, it must be a very complicated time to live for him.”