While Mick Schumacher’s F1 career has taken a hit following his release from Haas, it is certainly not over.
After Haas decided to opt for experience and sign Nico Hulkenberg to replace Schumacher, the young German was picked up by Mercedes, the team that oversaw the end of his father’s legendary career.
The 23-year-old will serve as the team’s third driver, taking part in simulator work and promotional activities to take some of the load off of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton.
When asked in a recent interview what his aims are for his time with Mercedes, Schumacher has explained that he wants to help the team as well as improving himself.
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“Maybe not in terms of racing it’s not the step that I wanted,” he said following the launch of the W14.
“But I think that definitely in many ways it is another way of improving my driving and improving myself as a racing driver.
“It’s definitely a privilege being part of Mercedes, but more than that it’s also a place where I always felt at home.
“So you know, I’ll hopefully be as much of a help to the team, and with everything that the team has done in the past, all the experience they have, I hope it’ll be of some us for myself to grow as a driver.”
The plan for Schumacher is for him to develop during his season with Mercedes before returning to the grid in 2024.
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With Lewis Hamilton and George Russell set to stay with the team for the foreseeable future, it seems most likely that the German will take the Nyck de Vries approach and move elsewhere, should he generate interest ahead of the 2024 season.
With very limited testing time available before the Bahrain Grand Prix kicks off the season next month, Schumacher will most likely not get any track time in the W14, having to settle for time in the simulator.
The 23-year-old will also be ineligible for the young driver free practice sessions later this season, as his two years with Haas now stop him from filling the requirements for Mercedes.