Formula One News: Sebastian Vettel in Shock Snub to Red Bull, Will Drive for Ferrari Next Season

Well, the 2015 Formula One season is certainly going to be interesting.

Sebastian Vettel, the reigning four-time world champion, who has struggled to make an impression this season, announced he will be leaving the team that won him all of those F1 championships – Red Bull – at the end of this season.

Red Bull and Vettel were the dominant force in Formula One the last four seasons, as the German zoomed his way into four straight drivers' championships. Vettel, who has been with Red Bull since 2009 – he was with the team's sister organisation Toro Rosso before – will now embark on a fresh challenge come 2015.

"Sebastian Vettel has advised us that he will be leaving Infiniti Red Bull Racing at the end of the 2014 season," said a statement from Red Bull.

"We want to warmly thank Sebastian for the incredible role he has played at Infiniti Red Bull Racing for the last six years."

Replacing Vettel in the hot seat at Red Bull will be current Toro Rosso driver Daniil Kvyat, who has been excellent in his first season in formula one, and will now partner the equally impressive Daniel Ricciardo.

"As we wish Sebastian well in the next stage of his career, we also look to the future with excitement, as the vacancy makes way for the next generation of Red Bull racers," added the statement from Red Bull.

"The Red Bull Junior Programme has developed some proven talents in recent times, including Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo, who has excelled in the RB10 and become a three-time Formula One race winner in his first season with the team.

"We're pleased to announce that Daniel will be joined in the team for 2015 by another rising star from the Junior Programme, Daniil Kvyat."

Speculation has been doing the rounds over Vettel's future for a while now, with the 27-year-old heavily linked with a switch to Ferrari, as Fernando Alonso looks set for a move back to McLaren.

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner confirmed Ferrari had made Vettel a "very attractive offer."

"He informed us last night and had his reasoning behind that," Horner told Sky Sports. "I don't think he'd taken the decision lightly and was obviously very emotional about it. If it's his desire to be somewhere else, it's not right for us to stand in his path."

"He'll be a Ferrari driver, absolutely. A window has opened there with whatever is going on, and he's decided the time is right for him."

As Mercedes continue to dominate Formula One this season – the drivers' world championship is going to come down to one of the two Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, while the constructors' championship is a foregone conclusion – there looks like being some serious alteration to the drivers' posts come the 2015 season.

The likes of Ferrari, McLaren and indeed Red Bull will hope to be more competitive next season, as they look to avoid having to watch Mercedes run away with the championship one more time.

It will certainly be weird to see Vettel in a car that is not a Red Bull, and even more interesting to see just how he deals with such a change. If the success of Hamilton, following his move from McLaren to Mercedes, is anything to go by, though, Vettel should be just fine.