Vettel defends Ferrari over Spa strategy

Sebastian Vettel has issued an unequivocal defence of Ferrari's one-stop strategy in Belgium, after his podium hopes were ended by a tyre blow-out less than two laps from the finish.

The four-time Formula One world champion, speaking for the first time since Sunday's race, hit back at suggestions that the decision to make only one stop constituted a risk of any kind.

"Just to make things clear: the team and I decided our strategy for the race together," Vettel said in a statement on his personal website.

"Our strategy was never risky, at any point.

"I support the team and the team supports me. And this is what makes us a team. The team is not to blame."

Vettel's statement follows his criticism of F1 tyre manufacturer Pirelli in the immediate aftermath of the Grand Prix - which prompted Pirelli to reiterate their belief that maximum stint lengths should be set out in the rules, rather than being left to individual teams to decide.

The Ferrari driver called for greater dialogue between drivers and Pirelli, adding: "We deserved to finish on the podium but that's racing; a different thing though is not to finish the race because of what happened.

"I think this is not easy to accept for a driver, even if it's not as bad as in Silverstone few years ago, but still we need to talk to each other as it can't happen without prior notice."