Last season, Mick Schumacher showed dramatic improvement at Haas, even securing a P6 finish in Austria after a series of impressive on-track battles.
The downside to Schumacher’s game however was his constancy, with the German’s impressive results often being matched by an equal low.
High-profile crashes in Monaco and Saudi Arabia made Schumacher an expensive asset and Haas eventually decided to swap potential for experience and sign Nico Hulkenberg to replace his younger countryman.
Schumacher was left without a race seat and was eventually picked up by Mercedes, where he will serve as the team’s third driver while keeping an eye out for potential opportunities to return to the grid in the future.
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The new Mercedes man was with the team in Bahrain, watching on from the garage as the Silver Arrows struggled to compete with Aston Martin and Ferrari.
Having spent his first race on the sidelines, Schumacher has now opened up on how it feels to be away from the racetrack.
“I’ve been sat on this stool there with my hands and my arms and just felt like the day was never going to end because I just wanted to jump in the car,” he said.
“I mean, it’s difficult to say. I feel very much at home at Mercedes, and therefore definitely have to see what options I have for the upcoming season. But also, I guess, a lot of that will be kind of shown as the years go by.
“It definitely feels great for me because I’ve come from a car, obviously, which has been quite difficult to drive and jump into a simulator which is pretty accurate and pretty close to, I would say, reality.
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“It’s really been good to have that feeling to be also able to try out a few different things in the simulator. From what the drivers it’s really not too far away.”
It has been rumoured that Schumacher could replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes next season, should the 38-year-old decide against extending his contract with the team.
Audi are also reportedly sniffing around the German but this would mean that Schumacher would have to wait until 2026 to return to the grid.