> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.the-race.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # The wider significance of Vettel's Schumacher run - URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/sebastian-vettel-michael-schumacher-ferrari-f1-demo-wider-significance/ - Published: 2026-09-08T19:01:38.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-08T19:01:38.000Z - Description: There was something emotional about Sebastian Vettel driving Michael Schumacher's 2002 title-winning Ferrari, of course. But it carried another message too - Author: Jon Noble - Tags: Formula 1, #ferrari, #fia, #secondary_feature_1 Sebastian Vettel was quite open that his run in Michael Schumacher's 2002 Formula 1 championship-winning F2002 at last weekend's Italian Grand Prix was about more than just a demonstration of famous machinery. On the one hand were the emotions of it all, with Vettel stepping into a cockpit once occupied by one of a childhood hero and, later, friend. "We had a deep connection with the friendship, got fairly close and shared so many nice memories," he said of Schumacher. "We'd much rather see him drive than me, myself included." But there was an added element of the demonstration helping stoke the flames on a current debate about what F1 should really be in the future. Because while the 2026 rules have, whether through design or by accident, produced some spectacular racing, Vettel said F1 is about more than just overtaking. "It is exciting, the racing is exciting, but there's so much more to unpack when you look at F1," he said at Monza. "Of course, from a driver's point of view, I want to drive the best car, and I want to win races. But then, what is the best car? "The car of 2002 was state-of-the-art at that time, and a pioneer, and represents so much for what F1 stands for. "The cars today do the same, and I think it's about performance, precision, discipline, hard work, but also responsibility and taking that forward. "Also caring about the future, which you know these cars are trying to do." ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dd/af/ddafbd99-2ccd-468c-b622-4b3cccf80b49/content/images/2026/09/260906_R13_ITALIA_DP_FGO09874_5d446764-f1c3-4fa5-a195-b57887583d1a.jpg) Midway through a year in which opinions have been divided over the impact of the 2026 rules, Vettel argued that the F2002 run was something to remind people of what the essence of F1 could be. "I'm probably not agreeing on everything that we currently have in the \[2026\] regulations from a driving point of view," he explained. "But looking forward, I think that's where there's a huge chance to take people on board. "And maybe also, for a moment like this, remind them what the sport was, what the sport is, and what the sport should be and can be in the future. And to do it responsibly." Vettel is not a fan of F1's turbo hybrid rules, even though as a keen environmentalist he is aware of the sustainable benefits from such power units. He has often questioned the true road relevance of it all. This stance was what prompted him to be one of the very first to suggest a few years ago, following a demonstration run in Nigel Mansell's 1992 FW14B at the 2022 British GP, that rather than F1 becoming more electric, the opposite would be better. With the growth of sustainable fuels - used in that FW14B run and last weekend at Monza - a door instead was open for a return to V8s or V10s in the future. While F1 initially poured cold water on that idea, times have changed. The complexities, costs and response to the new 50/50 rules have come together to leave both F1 and the FIA convinced that this will be the final ruleset for turbo hybrids like this. FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has declared that F1 [will be moving to V8s](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-v8-engine-plan-2030-2031-fia-ben-sulayem/) by 2031 at the latest, even though a small electrical element will remain. For Vettel, the acceptance of his vision for a sustainable fuel/V8 future is something he welcomed - but he said it would be wrong to think that this singular shift will be a miracle cure for all of F1's ills. "There is nothing you can apply that will fix all the problems," he said. "There are a lot of people in the paddock that I know, and I've been one of them, to look for the silver bullet. "You want something that propels you forward and gives you an advantage. But it's never one single thing. It's always a combination of a lot of things. "I think sustainable fuels are a step forward when you look at F1 and racing. There's huge potential, not just for F1, but also to inspire other racing series. "Then if you shape the next generation of cars, there's a lot of potential to do so responsibly, because some things that are maybe incredible from a technology point of view might not be transferable to the streets. So, I think there's also responsibility to do that. "And if there is not that chance anymore, then maybe you have to get to a point where you are happy to simplify. "You can achieve being responsible and setting an example in different ways and on different tracks, not just the racetrack, but even just next to the racetrack \[on the streets\]." It's the potential to return to some of the core attractions of the past, through both new technology and simplification, that has left Vettel convinced the impact of his F2002 run is proof of why an old-school F1 future can be bright. "I look forward to the future and what it brings, because I think F1 has so many nice values that shaped me and inspired me in my life," he said. "It touches a lot of people around the world and has that power to do so on many other things that are meaningful and impactful."