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Mick Schumacher is running out of time in the fight for a place in Formula 1. Formula 1 patron Helmut Marko denied him a possible cockpit.
Bahrain – For the second time, Mick Schumacher is only allowed to watch the start of the Formula 1 season. When the lights go out in the Bahrain desert on Saturday (TV information is available here), the German will be in the paddock as a Mercedes reserve driver – but he won’t be sitting where he would like to sit again: in the cockpit.
| Born: | March 22, 1999 (age 24), Genolier, Switzerland |
| Parents: | Michael Schumacher, Corinna Schumacher |
| Starts in Formula 1: | 43 |
| World Cup points: | 12 |
Formula 1 comeback? Time is running out for Mick Schumacher
The clock is running against Schumacher. An unwritten rule of the premier class says: Anyone who has been in once and been out for more than two years has an extremely difficult time. Translated: If Formula 1 legend Michael Schumacher’s pupil doesn’t get a cockpit in 2025, it’s likely that the door will never open again.
His team boss at Mercedes also knows that Mick Schumacher is slowly but surely running out of time. “For Mick it’s about getting a cockpit for the 2025 season. Otherwise – you have to be honest – it will be difficult,” said Toto Wolff in an interview with the shortly before the first race weekend World.
Toto Wolff is sure: “If Michael had been there, Mick would still have a cockpit”
The Austrian is considered one of the Schumi son’s biggest supporters and signed him to Mercedes in 2022 after he left Haas. He can therefore assess the situation realistically enough – and assumes that Michael Schumacher’s serious accident will also make it more difficult.
“I think that if Michael had been there, Mick would still have a cockpit,” suspects Wolff and emphasizes: “I think that Mick has the talent for Formula 1.” After Hamilton’s confirmed move to Ferrari, he is now at Mercedes, of all places a cockpit free for the next season. But that would probably be too big for Schumacher. Experienced players and a child prodigy have better chances.
“I vetoed”: Formula 1 patron denied Mick Schumacher a cockpit
A more realistic option would have been Red Bull’s second team. Operating under the name Racing Bulls F1 since this season, the racing team, then called AlphaTauri, showed interest in Schumacher – even before he left Haas. But a Formula 1 patron prevented the change: Red Bulls Motorsport boss Helmut Marko.
“I vetoed it because I wanted to stay true to our path, the Red Bull DNA. Since we joined Formula 1, we have continually focused on talent. When Mick was an option, he had already driven for Haas for two years and was still under contract with Ferrari,” Marko explains World.
Instead, AlphaTauri signed Nyck de Vries, but Marko today admits that the Dutchman “couldn’t live up to his expectations at all”. The Formula 1 carousel continued to turn. To date, Mick Schumacher has not been able to get back on. (ep)