Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has been busy praising reserve driver Mick Schumacher, who he admits is “such a great guy”.
Schumacher joined the Silver Arrows at the start of the 2023 season in his backup role, following the departure of former Mercedes reserve Nyck de Vries.
The timing of De Vries’ exit to AlphaTauri worked well for the German, as he was in need of a job after Haas opted to sign Nico Hulkenberg instead of retaining him.
Schumacher followed in his father’s – Michael Schumacher – footsteps by joining Mercedes, with the seven-time World Champion having raced for them from 2010-2012.
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The ex-Haas driver has done brilliantly in his role and recently drove the W14 for the first-time at a Pirelli tyre test in Barcelona.
He’s had some extremely late nights since joining the Brackley-based team, having often completed late Friday night simulator sessions if the team have struggled in Free Practice 1 or Free Practice 2.
Whether he’s ever offered a Mercedes seat remains to be seen, with him presumably not keen to remain on the bench until Lewis Hamilton retires in a few years.
Wolff is clearly a huge fan of Schumacher, who he praised for having “all the right values in place”.
“Mick is just such a great guy,” Wolff said in his mid-season review, as reported by GPFans.com.
“He’s not only a good racing driver but he has all the right values in place.”
Schumacher’s simulator work has helped Hamilton and George Russell massively this season, with the duo having often struggled on the opening day of a Grand Prix.
The W14 has proven to be another difficult car to tame; however, it’s nowhere near as shocking as the W13.
It’s nevertheless been a frustrating start to the season for the Germans, who sit 256 points behind Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship.
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Unlike last season, it’s Hamilton who is currently winning the intra-team battle, with the 103-time race winner having gotten to grips with the new car quicker than Russell.
Wolff has praised both drivers though for having done a “really good job”.
“Both drivers did a really good job in coping with the ups and downs and the drivability of the car,” added Wolff.