As the days go by it looks increasingly likely that Mick Schumacher will not have a race seat in Formula 1 next year, with Nico Hulkenberg leaving his reserve driver role at Aston Martin in anticipation of a return to the grid.
The young German qualified last in Brazil, while his teammate Kevin Magnussen shocked the world by taking his first ever pole position, as wet conditions played havoc.
Former F1 Chief Executive Bernie Ecclestone has suggested that if Schumacher does lose his Haas seat, then he should forget about Formula 1 and try his luck in a different racing series, with his surname becoming a burden of expectation for the 23-year-old in F1.
Schumacher has hit back at Ecclestone’s comments, insisting that he loves F1 too much to give up on his dream, despite there being no other race seats available should Haas decide to make a change, which looks increasingly likely by the day.
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The son of F1 legend Michael Schumacher may now have been handed a lifeline by one of his dad’s former employers, with Mercedes reportedly shortlisting the Haas driver as a potential reserve driver for next year.
The Silver Arrows have lost their current reserve driver Nyck de Vries to AlphaTauri for 2023 and had initially looked set to appoint McLaren driver Daniel Ricciardo to fill the role, however competition from his current team and Red Bull have forced the team to draw up a list of candidates should Ricciardo chose elsewhere.
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A reserve driver position is not exactly what Schumacher would have hoped for in 2023, however with Audi rumoured to be sniffing around the German for their debut season in 2026, it could be in the 23-year-old’s best interests to keep himself ticking over in Formula 1, rather than detaching himself from the grid entirely.
Haas team principal Guenther Steiner has said that he hopes to announce Magnuessen’s 2023 partner prior to the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, with Hulkenberg claiming that there are negotiations ongoing for his return to the grid, and that he is quietly confident of getting a deal wrapped up in the coming weeks.
Schumacher has earned a place in the hearts of F1 fans worldwide after his likeable personality and genuine appreciation for his position in the sport shone through in Netflix’s ‘Drive to Survive’ coverage of the 2021 season, and many will hope that Abu Dhabi will not be the last time they see Schumacher in an F1 car.