Vettel not deterred by Ferrari pressure

Cape Town - Sebastian Vettel says the pressure put on Ferrari by its president Sergio Marchionne is positive.

This week, with the Maranello marque having failed to win one of the four races so far, Marchionne declared that he "expects" victory in Barcelona, because Ferrari "deserves" it.

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Support of the president

When asked about the effect that sort of pressure has on the team, Vettel answered: "I don't want to comment on what is in the press, but I know enough of what he has told me.

"But it's great to see that he cares and that he is as disappointed and frustrated as we all are that we have not achieved the results that we should have.

"I see it more positively than what the media calls pressure.  I think it's good that the president is behind us," Vettel added.

His team mate, Kimi Raikkonen, also sounded positive on Thursday, saying that while Ferrari is still behind, the gap to Mercedes is no longer huge.

He said: "If you look at how many points are still available, we are not so far away from the top."