Though he admits to missing the "competition and tension", Sebastian Vettel is enjoying his retirement, especially the time he can spend with his kids.

Since walking away from the sport at the end of last season, little has been heard of four-time world champion, Sebastian Vettel.

Always one of the most private drivers on the grid, Vettel recently announced that he will be driving Nigel Mansell's iconic Williams FW14B at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Though the media speculates over a possible return to the F1 grid, Vettel prefers to watch from the comfort of his living room, even refusing to take the well-worn path to TV punditry.

Speaking to Bild, Vettel insists that he is enjoying retirement.

"After such a long time in racing, I have something like an everyday life for the first time," he says. "It took me some time to get used to it.

"Above all, I enjoy the time with my children," he adds.

One tends to think of racing drivers in terms of their F1 careers, but like most Vettel started off in karts, when he was just 3, though he didn't begin racing competitively until he was 8. Progressing to single-seaters at 16, he made his F1 debut just four years later. In other words racing has been his life.

"So far I'm doing very well with my decision, but what I miss most is the competition and the tension," he admits.

"It was strange at first not to be there," he adds. "But I can handle it well and follow the sport with great interest."

The German called time on his career following two seasons with Aston Martin, which didn't enjoy the best of seasons in 2022. Now however, Fernando Alonso is third in the championship having scored four podiums from five races.

"I am very happy for my former team," he said. "They have worked hard in recent years, it's nice that they're clinching a few trophies now."

Speaking about his forthcoming visit to Goodwood with the Williams, which follows a demo run at last year's British Grand Prix, he says: "I let myself be inspired, look at a lot, collect ideas. Let's see what ends up being a project.

Driving my old racing cars with e-fuels at Goodwood is one thing. Motorsport is my passion. It's important to me to show that we can drive just as well and quickly with synthetic, i.e. CO2-neutral, fuel. And that already today synthetic fuels offer a solution to responsibly having fun. A lot of people just don't know that yet."