According to Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, Mick Schumacher could still make it back onto the F1 grid with a full-time contract.
The German racing driver was dropped from Haas at the end of the 2022 season but was quickly picked up by Mercedes as a reserve driver for this year. On top of this, the driver will be contributing to the 2024 W14 that will be driven by Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.
Despite being very happy to be engulfed by the Brackley squad, the son of the 7-time world champion Michael Schumacher is still focused on returning to the sport as a full-time driver. This could be as soon as 2024 if he is able to keep on top of the constantly evolving driver market.
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Talking to Racingnews.365, Wolff sung his praises while adding to the idea of him returning:
“The most important factor is his personality. He’s a well-educated, intelligent and talented young man.
“You see that his junior career track was very good, and I believe if we can give him a safe environment to further develop, he can be a good racing driver in a permanent seat in the future.
“In the same way we have let Nyck de Vries go in order for him to achieve a career that could be something that could happen to Mick. Whether it is in our team or letting him go elsewhere, we don’t know.”
There have been several examples of drivers retuning to the sport after being pushed out, but it will be very difficult for Schumacher to prove his talent with him being in unsatisfactory machinery so far in his F1 career. But regardless of this, Schumacher has proven himself in the likes of F2 where he became champion.
One opportunity we’ve spotted for the German driver would be the introduction of Audi in 2026. This would be a prime opportunity for Schumacher to return. This could potentially be even sooner if Audi has any say in Sauber with Zhou Guanyu’s contract coming to an end soon.
Yes, the chances are low, but I think fans of the sport would be disappointed to see the Schumacher name leave entirely.
