BREAKING: Sebastian Vettel Quits Formula 1

Sebastian Vettel is on the verge of breaking the internet today. Just a few hours ago, F1's honorary dad officially started an Instagram account, which is entirely out of character. He's notoriously social media shy.

In another strange turn of events, Aston Martin told Planet F1 that it expected Vettel to announce his contract extension soon. As it turns out, the announcement came sooner than expected. Vettel opened his Instagram account to announce that he would retire from F1 at the end of the 2022 season.

Vettel is one of the most successful drivers in F1 history. He won four World Championships with Red Bull, making him the most successful driver the energy drink racer has employed to date.

In short, Vettel is retiring because he has a life outside Formula 1. "As much as there is life on track, there is my life off track too," said Vettel. Vettel has three kids, and a life spent constantly traveling across continents is obviously not ideal.

We can't say that we're surprised. The 2022 version of Vettel is far removed from the 2010-2013 world champion. He grew his hair and started making jokes about jellybeans and touching Lewis Hamilton's car inappropriately. Vettel seemed to be enjoying life in the midfield, having nothing left to prove. He remains the youngest driver to ever win the driver's championship, aged just 23 years and 134 days old. He's also part of an extremely exclusive list of people who have won the championship more than twice. He's tied with Alain Prost and beaten only by Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher, and Juan Manuel Fangio.

After leaving Red Bull, Vettel raced for Scuderia Ferrari from 2015-2020. Unfortunately, the Scarlet Curse hit him as severely as Charles Leclerc, and he never managed to win the coveted title again. In 2021, he joined Aston Martin. Shortly after joining Aston, Vettel sold his LaFerrari, Enzo, F12tdf, and F50, to name just a few. These days he switches between his famous bicycle and an Aston Martin DBX.

Aston Martin is going through a rough patch, but even so, Vettel always managed to keep his head high. He took it upon himself to mentor a young Mick Schumacher, repaying the kindness shown to him by Mick's father.

Vettel will be remembered for his sense of humor and antics in the pitlane. He was widely known as inspector Seb because of his habit of getting up close and personal with competitor cars.

"The decision to retire has been a difficult one for me to take, and I have spent a lot of time thinking about it; at the end of the year I want to take some more time to reflect on what I will focus on next; it is very clear to me that, being a father, I want to spend more time with my family. But today is not about saying goodbye. Rather, it is about saying thank you - to everyone - not least to the fans, without whose passionate support Formula 1 could not exist," said Vettel.

"Sebastian is a superb driver - fast, intelligent and strategic - and of course, we are going to miss those qualities. However, we have all learned from him, and the knowledge that we have gained from working with him will continue to benefit our team long after his departure," said Mike Krach, Aston Martin team principal.

Auf Wiedersehen, Seb. You will be missed. We can't wait for the tell-all biography.