Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has not ruled out giving Mick Schumacher a drive at the iconic Silver Arrows. Wolff said Schumacher “has to keep learning” and said the arrival of Kevin Magnussen at Haas would be a good “benchmark” for the 23-year-old.
His dad Michael Schumacher drove for Mercedes during his F1 comeback between 2010 and 2012. In an interview with German newspaper Bild, Wolff was asked what it would take for Schumacher to become a candidate for Mercedes.
Wolff replied: “He has to keep learning. With Kevin Magnussen as a new teammate, Mick has a good benchmark for where he is.
“It’s always about learning, learning, learning for him.”
Last year, Wolff first behind Schumacher could one day be signed for Mercedes but didn’t want to put “pressure” on the former F2 champion. Speaking to RTL, he said Schumacher had the “potential” to sit at the top of the sport once he had more experience in F1.
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He said: “Mick definitely has the potential to sit in a top car and why not in a Mercedes, but he has to go his way. You have to give him time. Only when a driver has the experience, doesn’t make big mistakes anymore, convert the speed, then he can bring in big successes in a top car.”
The Haas driver even defended the team after Max Versyapepn claimed 90 per cent of the grid would win with a Mercedes car.
He said: “Everyone deserves their place in Formula 1 and anyone can drive here. But you can only say you can win a race with Mercedes if you sit in it. Conversely, it’s an arrogant consideration.”
Despite interest from Mercedes, Schumacher is tipped to be in line to inherit a Ferrari seat in the near future.
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At the end of last season, the Scuderia announced that Schumacher, who has made it no secret that his dream would be to race for Ferrari in the near future, would become one of the team’s reserve drivers for 2022. It means he or Antonio Givonazzi would step in to race for the team if Charles Leclerc or Carlos Sainz are unavailable.
Team principal Mattia Binotto also fired a warning to rival teams, highlighting Mick was a “Ferrari driver”.
He said: “He is a Ferrari driver. We shouldn’t forget that. He has been part of the academy and the reason we have an academy is to identify who can be the next Ferrari driver for the future.”
