World champion details cause of early F1 exit

Reigning Formula E world champion Pascal Wehrlein has detailed why his Formula 1 career lasted just two seasons. 

The German competed for backmarker Manor in 2016, before moving to Sauber for the 2017 campaign. 

He performed well for both teams who had underwhelming packages and scored points on a few occasions. 

However, he was, ultimately, replaced by Charles Leclerc for the 2018 campaign, with Mercedes having failed to find its protégé at the time another seat on the grid. 

Wehrlein was many people's favourite to replace Nico Rosberg at Mercedes, although Valtteri Bottas was signed from Williams.

The current Porsche FE driver – who is making his Daytona 24 Hours debut this weekend – was 21 years old when he signed for Manor, but does not believe his age was the problem for his short stint in F1. 

"I wouldn't say it was too early," Wehrlein told Autoweek. "I think the environment was not correct. Both times, I was in a car that finished last. The only highlights I could do were two or three highlights a year.

"Don't get me wrong, it was great to get a point in the Manor car in 2016 or to score points with the Sauber. 

"The Sauber was racing with a previous year's engine, so it was already a couple tenths off on the straights. Most of the time, we were fighting for 15th."

Prior to moving to F1, Wehrlein became the youngest-ever DTM champion at 20, highlighting his talent.

There is no doubting that he is an exceptional driver, with Wehrlein himself noting that things just did not happen at the right time for him.

"I just think I wasn't at the right place at the right time," added the 30-year-old. "I think I still showed the performance. I outscored my team-mates, outscored them in qualifying,

"Obviously, you always think you could have done something better. Don't get me wrong, there's always things I'm sure I would probably do better today with a lot more experience."