'Hurts my heart': F1 fans shattered over Sebastian Vettel news

Four-time F1 world champion Sebastian Vettel will have to sit out this weekend's season opening Bahrain Grand Prix after contracting Covid-19.

Anticipation for the new season is at fever pitch thanks to the sport's updated regulations, which has seen a major design shift for all 10 teams this season.

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Vettel is the second F1 driver to test positive for coronavirus in recent weeks, with McLaren's Daniel Ricciardo missing the final testing sessions after he contracted the virus.

The Australian star is still expected to race this weekend, while Aston Martin will substitute reserve driver Nico Hulkenberg in for the Vettel.

Hulkenberg is Aston Martin's reserve driver and has stood in for them three times already since he last raced full time in Formula One with Renault in 2019.

The 34-year-old replaced Mexican Sergio Perez twice and Canadian Lance Stroll once in 2020 when the Silverstone-based team competed as Racing Point, with both drivers testing positive for COVID-19.

His last race was the 2020 Eifel Grand Prix at the Nuerburgring, when he replaced Stroll.

Fans were dismayed by the news one of the most popular drivers on the grid would not be on hand to help usher in a new era for the sport.

Fortunately for Aston Martin, their reserve driver is no slouch, despite holding the record for the most F1 starts without a podium.

Hulkenberg, the 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours winner, has started in 179 Grand Prix races, without standing on the podium, in a career that began with Williams in 2010 and included stints with Aston Martin's predecessors Force India.

Vettel out, but Ricciardo recovers from Covid for F1 seaosn opener

Ricciardo will race in Sunday's season-opening Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix after recovering from COVID-19.

The 32-year-old Australian tested positive last week and was unable to participate in three days of pre-season testing in the Gulf kingdom.

"Daniel has now returned a number of negative tests and will therefore return to the paddock on Thursday ready to compete in this weekend's Bahrain GP," his McLaren team said on Wednesday.

"Daniel has been feeling better each day as he continued to recover while in isolation following local regulations in Bahrain."

Rivals Alpine had offered McLaren their Australian reserve driver Oscar Piastri as a stand-in should Ricciardo be unable to race.

Practice for the opening race at Sakhir is on Friday and Ricciardo will go into it without having driven the car since Barcelona on February 24.

Bahrain is something of a home race for McLaren, with the team majority owned by the Gulf kingdom's sovereign investment fund Mumtalakat.

Ricciardo finished seventh last year with team mate Lando Norris fourth.

Meanwhile, Vettel has warned Lewis Hamilton he expects Max Verstappen to flourish as Formula One's defending world champion.

Hamilton and Red Bull driver Verstappen are set to renew their rivalry on Sunday.

Verstappen 24, will line up on the grid as the reigning champion for the first time in his career after he beat Hamilton at last December's hotly disputed finale in Abu Dhabi.

With AAP

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