Sebastian Vettel’s delayed start to the 2022 season is finally coming to an end as the German will return to the wheel of his AMR22 at Albert Park in Melbourne next weekend.

The four-time World Champion missed the opening two races of the season after testing positive for COVID ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix earlier this month.

It hasn’t been the easiest of starts to the 2022 campaign for the Silverstone-based squad as their new car has been very disappointing.

While Lance Stroll managed to make Q2 in Jeddah – at the expense of Lewis Hamilton – they’ve looked a long way off the pace to get inside the top 10 on merit on both a Saturday and Sunday.

Vettel’s replacement Nico Hulkenberg was knocked out in Q1 on both occasions, while Stroll suffered the same fate in Bahrain.

The best result for the team has been a lowly 12th, achieved by Stroll in Bahrain and Hulkenberg last Sunday in Saudi Arabia.

In a short statement on Twitter, Aston Martin wrote: “We are pleased to confirm that Sebastian Vettel is now fit to race and will therefore line up alongside Lance Stroll in Melbourne to kick off his 2022 F1 season at the Australian Grand Prix.”

TEAM UPDATE: We are pleased to confirm that Sebastian Vettel is now fit to race and will therefore line up alongside @lance_stroll in Melbourne to kick off his 2022 @F1 season at the @ausgrandprix. 💚#F1 #AusGP pic.twitter.com/LrFqaHyQ8W

— Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) March 31, 2022

Good to have you back, Seb 🤝 See you on track in Melbourne 🇦🇺 #F1 pic.twitter.com/TFpG6y7h6k

— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) March 31, 2022