Formula One photographer Mark Sutton had reported seeing the German getting into the passenger seat of Szafnauer's Ferrari after the race at Silverstone, but was unable to take pictures.
The German, whose bid for a fifth crown petered out last year in mistakes and misfortune, had already been facing questions about whether he was making too many errors to win the championship.
Thankfully for world champion Sebastian Vettel the Singapore Grand Prix is a marathon and not a sprint as the German overcame a self-perceived lack of pace in his Red Bull to claim the two-hour night race.
Ferrari's Fernando Alonso congratulated Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel on his fourth successive Formula One world title on Sunday but reserved judgement on where the German stood among the greats.
Ferrari's Formula One world championship leader Sebastian Vettel was handed a five-second penalty for colliding with the Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas on the opening lap of the French Grand Prix on Sunday.
Sebastian Vettel's record run of nine consecutive race victories ended on Sunday when the quadruple world champion retired his Red Bull from the season-opening Australian Grand Prix with a reliability problem.
Ferrari are giving Sebastian Vettel the Michael Schumacher treatment, according to the German's main title rival Lewis Hamilton.
The German, winner of the season's first two races, had been second before coming in for a fresh set of tyres while Hamilton won with one stop from pole position.
Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber cleared the air after Sunday's season-ending race in Abu Dhabi, the German said on Tuesday.
Mark Webber led a Red Bull one-two in the Brazilian Grand Prix on Sunday to celebrate his first victory of the year in the last race of the Formula One season.
Sebastian Vettel clocked a best lap in one minute and 40.464 seconds to outpace nearest rival and championship leader Valtteri Bottas of Mercedes by 0.272s.
The writing has been on the wall for Sebastian Vettel since September 2018 when Ferrari announced Charles Leclerc as his Formula One team mate. The German, who will leave the Italian team at the end of a pandemic-hit 2020 season that has yet to start, was top dog at Maranello at the time but Leclerc was young, hungry and determined.
Spain's Fernando Alonso won the German Grand Prix for Ferrari on Sunday to extend his overall Formula One championship lead to 34 points.
Formula One World champion Sebastian Vettel won a controversial Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday after defying orders to back off and let Red Bull team mate Mark Webber take the chequered flag ahead of him.
Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel said he would still sleep soundly despite a mistake that cost him a home German Grand Prix win at Hockenheim and the Formula One championship lead on Sunday.
This is the German's 50th career win
Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel apologised in person to Red Bull staff for ignoring team orders in a controversial Malaysian Grand Prix last weekend.
Ferrari title rival Sebastian Vettel qualified only ninth.
"The FIA will further examine the causes of the incident in order to evaluate whether further action is necessary," it announced in a statement.
It all came good for Sebastian Vettel just when it all seemed to be going wrong on Sunday in a Brazilian Grand Prix that turned the Red Bull driver into Formula One's youngest triple world champion.
Triple world champion Lewis Hamilton said he still has "the utmost respect" for Formula One title rival Sebastian Vettel after accepting a public apology from the Ferrari driver on Thursday.
The 31-year-old German fell 30 points behind race-winner Hamilton after a collision with the Briton left him struggling to finish fourth in Monza last time out, one of several races where Vettel has frittered away a position of authority.
The German, taking his fourth win of the season, took the chequered flag 0.9 seconds ahead of Kimi Raikkonen with Hamilton finishing fourth after sportingly surrendering third place to team mate Valtteri Bottas on the last lap.
I am with my dream team, says Mercedes driver
Sebastian Vettel's hopes of fighting champions Mercedes for victory in Sunday's Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix went up in smoke before the start when his Ferrari's engine blew on the formation lap.
Germany's Sebastian Vettel became Formula One's youngest double world champion at the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday. The following are some key facts about the Red Bull driver.
Germany's Sebastian Vettel, the youngest four-time Formula One world champion in history at 26, was named Laureus World Sportsman of the Year, US swimmer Missy Franklin, at 18, became the youngest ever winner of the Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award.
Sunday's explosive Azerbaijan Grand Prix more than made up for last year's dull race in Baku, bursting the budding 'bromance' and replacing it with something much more heavyweight.
World champion Sebastian Vettel stormed to pole position for the Malaysian Grand Prix on Saturday, the German pipping McLaren's Lewis Hamilton on his final flying lap around the Sepang circuit.
Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel charged to pole position at the Belgian Grand Prix on Saturday after denying McLaren's Lewis Hamilton the top slot in the final seconds of qualifying.
Formula 1 expert and former racer Karun Chandhok sees four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel taking either a sabbatical next year or walk into retirement after finding himself without a drive for the 2021 season. The 2020 season is yet to start due to the COVID-19 pandemic but Vettel leaving Ferrari at the end of year has given the sport's followers plenty to talk about.
Red Bull's double world champion Sebastian Vettel ran away with the inaugural Indian Formula One Grand Prix on Sunday for his 11th victory in 17 races this season.
World champion Sebastian Vettel won the Belgian Grand Prix and stretched his Formula One lead to 92 points in a Red Bull one-two finish with Australian Mark Webber Sunday.
Sebastian Vettel continued his imperious march towards a fourth consecutive Formula One world championship by storming to pole position at the Singapore Grand Prix on Saturday after dominating the two days of practice.
Sebastian Vettel has dampened speculation he is set to jump ship from Red Bull and join Ferrari in 2014 by saying he is "extremely committed" to the team who helped him claim a third consecutive Formula One title on Sunday.
Dominant double World champion Sebastian Vettel took pole position at the Japanese Grand Prix for the fourth year in succession on Saturday, with Mark Webber to start alongside the German on an all-Red Bull front row.
Red Bull's Max Verstappen won a wet and crazily chaotic German Grand Prix littered with crashes and safety car periods on Sunday with Mercedes' Formula One leader Lewis Hamilton failing to score.
Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel committed no infringement during the season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix, Formula One's governing body the FIA said on Friday, meaning the German keeps his world title.
Hamilton's flying lap of one minute 22.188 seconds set a new record at Albert Park but was only 0.268 seconds in front of German Vettel, offering the tantalising prospect of a competitive championship after three years of domination by the Silver Arrows.
Formula One championship leader Sebastian Vettel looked good for pole position at the Indian Grand Prix on Saturday after completing a practice hat-trick.
