Vettel: It is an honor to drive for Ferrari

Vettel speaks during the media conference in Australia Thursday

On his first race weekend with Scuderia Ferrari, Sebastian Vettel took part in FIA press conference, his first meeting with the specialist media here at Melbourne's Albert Park circuit.

"The atmosphere is very positive," began the German when asked about his new environment. "Obviously there's been a lot of change over the winter, with everyone working very hard and we've definitely improved as a team. Now we must wait until everyone is on track, so we can see where the others are, because over the winter tests, it's been a bit tricky to understand everything."

The Scuderia is the longest serving team in the sport and that's always part of its appeal for drivers, including Vettel. "There is a lot of history in this team and for me it's an honor to race for Ferrari and at this stage, I'm very happy" he said. "Now, I can't wait to get in the car and start racing with this team. But we know we have to work hard because our ambition is set very high and we want to make sure that Ferrari gets back to the top."

As to whether that return to form could feature wins in 2015, Vettel gave a cautiously optimistic reply: "It depends on the form of the other teams, but we have made a step forward, although we have yet to find out how big it is. We saw last year that it's not just Mercedes who can win races, so if you put yourself in a very strong position and now at the start of the season, we are right behind, if something happens, then you are there."

A journalist asked if Seb's relationship with Kimi might suffer now they are team-mates. "I have known Kimi for a while now and we respect each other," he responded. "He is very straightforward and honest. We will be trying to beat one another on the track, which is normal and if there are ever some issues we will be able to sort them out."