Coming in to Formula 1 and cementing your position is never an easy task, especially when you spend your rookie year in a car that is only capable of a back of the grid finish week in week out.
While Mick Schumacher beat his teammate Nikita Mazepin last year, and has at times put in strong performances in a more competitive Haas this year, it appears that his time with the team is coming to an end.
Guenther Steiner had set an ultimatum for Schumacher, score points and you’ll keep your seat, however since then car damage and qualifying mistakes have resigned the German to bottom half finishes in Austin and Mexico, and with Steiner suggesting that the team will announce their driver for next year before Abu Dhabi, it seems the writing is on the wall for Schumacher.
Former F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone has urged the 23-year-old to forget about Formula 1 and move on to a different racing series, claiming that his surname carries too much weight and therefore makes life difficult for the Haas driver.
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Schumacher has immediately hit back at Ecclestone’s suggestion, saying that he will not be taking his advice, as he does not care about everyone’s opinions surrounding his future.
“Everyone always has an opinion on everything, but I care about the opinions of the people I care about,” he explained when asked about the comments.
“Of course my family and a few other people in Formula 1 – Sebastian Vettel, for example. Those are the opinions that matter to me.”
The young German has argued that his passion for F1 makes it impossible for him to move on and forget about it, refusing to give up his dream of racing in the series for the rest of his career.
“It’s hard to forget Formula 1,” he said. “I love it too much, so I won’t do that.
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Nico Hulkenberg is currently the favourite to take over from Schumacher at Haas, with the 35-year-old reportedly upping the intensity of his training program, as he starts to gear up for a return to the grid.
Hulkenberg has also recently left his reserve driver role at Aston Martin, which is the clearest indicator yet that he will be taking a race seat next year, with Haas’ the only one left available, spelling bad news for Schumacher.