Fernando Alonso was 'very generous' with room at the start of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, says Sebastian Vettel. 

Seb embarked on his final race of his career on Sunday as he earned a point with a P10 finish, though it could have perhaps been even better had a bold strategy call from Aston Martin not slightly backfired on him.

Indeed, he put in a top performance and was very much determined to go out on a high, with him battling with a number of drivers up and down the grid.

They were surely eager to avoid being the one taking him out of his final race, too, and Fernando Alonso even said on Saturday that 'he would look after Seb' given they were starting P9 and P10 on the grid at lights out.

Indeed, that seemed to prove the case as well with Sebastian telling the press back in Abu Dhabi that the Spaniard was particularly kind with the room he gave at the start of the Grand Prix:

"You could feel that [willingness to leave more space] a bit with Fernando, he was very generous at the beginning.

"After that, the Saubers fought very hard because they wanted to defend the constructors' [position].

"It was a shame I was stuck behind Esteban at the beginning because I thought we had better deg but then we stayed out way too long and lost so much time."

Sebastian Vettel in Abu Dhabi
ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - NOVEMBER 20: Sebastian Vettel of Germany driving the (5) Aston Martin AMR22 Mercedes on track during the F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi at Yas Marina Circuit on November 20, 2022 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - NOVEMBER 20: Sebastian Vettel of Germany driving the (5) Aston Martin AMR22 Mercedes on track during the F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi at Yas Marina Circuit on November 20, 2022 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

Vettel had a strong race and will be pleased that he ended it on some kind of high with a point in his final race, with him crossing the line and then able to do some donuts in his Aston Martin.

Whether we see him back in F1 in the future remains to be seen, of course, as plenty of drivers have come back after retiring or leaving, but it did feel as though this could be it for Seb, and fair play to him if it is.

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