Mick Schumacher is test and reserve driver for Mercedes and McLaren for the coming season.Image: IMAGO/Kolvenbach
formula 1
For Mick Schumacher, the coming Formula 1 season will be very different than the past two years. Instead of completing the three training sessions at the weekend, fighting for a good grid position in qualifying and fighting for points in the race, he will probably spend a lot of time in the simulator.
The 23-year-old lost his regular cockpit at Haas to Nico Hülkenberg and has now joined Mercedes as a test and reserve driver. Schumacher would also be used at McLaren should the regular drivers Lando Norris or Oscar Piastri fail at a weekend.
Schumacher’s new role at Mercedes
On the sidelines of the presentation of the new Mercedes for the season, Schumacher spoke to Sky about his plans for the coming season. He himself classifies his situation as “difficult”. “Because of course I want to drive myself. But I understand my role and my tasks and know that they are very important for the team,” adds the son of record world champion Michael Schumacher.
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Schumacher does not yet know if and when he will be allowed to climb into the new “W14” on a race weekend, but says: “That is the hope. We still have to see if and when that is the case. But that would of course be very good to get a comparison to working on the simulator and then to be able to help the team even better.”
In order for it to be used in races, the regular drivers and Lewis Hamilton and George Russell would first have to be injured, ill or otherwise prevented.
Schumacher’s great advantage
A big advantage that Schumacher has through his commitment as a test driver will be his presence in the paddock. He had said before that he encountered all teams again and again. He also told Sky how he wanted to use the coming season in the paddock: “Keep chatting with everyone. I’m very happy with Mercedes. But my goal is to drive in Formula 1 again. We’ll have to see how the year plays out and what opportunities there are.”
Schumacher is likely to have hopes of a comeback in Formula 1 from one of his good friends in the driver field: Esteban Ocon. The Frenchman drove for Force India for two years in 2017 and 2018, after which he also did not get a regular cockpit. In 2019, Ocon also worked for Mercedes as a test and reserve driver.
The year after he was given the chance again, proved himself in Renault for a year and then switched to Alpine in 2021, where he is still under contract. Schumacher will now hope for a similar development and want to use the season at Mercedes as a springboard in the second row.
For Mick Schumacher, the coming Formula 1 season will be very different than the past two years. Instead of completing the three training sessions at the weekend, fighting for a good grid position in qualifying and fighting for points in the race, he will probably spend a lot of time in the simulator.
