While you may know his father, how much do you really know about Mick Schumacher? Despite being the son of the most famous F1 driver of all time, Mick is determined to make a name for himself in the sport. Born in 1999, Mick started his Formula 1 career like any other driver by karting. Despite having the 7-time World Champion as his dad, he worked on his craft and excelled through the various leagues, earning his spot in the Ferrari Driver Academy.
This led to him being designated the official Ferrari backup driver for the 2022 season while still competing for the Haas F1 team. As one of the most recognizable names in the Paddock, Mick is definitely destined for greatness. To get to know this up-and-coming driver, here are 10 fast facts about Mick Schumacher:
10 His father is Michael Schumacher
Okay, let’s get the obvious ones out the way first. Mick Schumacher is the son of the 7-time World Champion, Michael Schumacher. While many may debate his record in Formula 1, he is widely considered one of the greatest drivers of all time.
Despite Michael Schumacher competing in Formula 1 well after Mick was born, Michael was a dedicated and present father. As shown in the Netflix documentary about Schumacher’s life, Michael played a huge role in his son’s childhood.
9 Mick Started With Karting
Just like most other Formula 1 drivers on the grid today, Mick started his professional career with karting. Growing up in Switzerland, Mick started karting in 2011 and 2012. Having started in the KF3 class of the ADAC Kart Masters, Mick ended up finishing in 9th place in 2011 and improved to 7th the following year.
One of the most notable parts of Mick’s karting career is that his father, Michael, was incredibly present during this time. He can be seen in the background of many videos as a proud father holding up a video camera with the other dads.
8th German Junior Kart Championship
Mick Schumacher worked his way through the competition for a few years before entering the German Junior Kart Championships in 2014. To compete on the national level, Mick went by the name “Mick Junior” rather than using Schumacher in his name.
This may be a small detail, but it showed his desire to make a name for himself in the sport and not solely rely on the success of his father to open doors for him. This is a huge contrast to many other Formula 1 drivers who happily welcome the advantages that privilege and wealth have to offer them in their careers.
7 formula 4
At the end of 2014, Mick was called in to complete a few tests for a Formula 4 racing team. This led to him securing a seat in Formula 4 for the following year. Racing for the Van Amersfoort Racing Team, he entered under the Schumacher name for the first time since karting.
During his few seasons in Formula 4, Mick also entered the Italian F4 Championship. In this competition, Mick stood out as he finished runner-up in both championships. This is where he was initially noticed by the Ferrari scouts and was offered to be part of the Ferrari Drivers Academy.
6 formula 3
In 2016, Mick graduated with flying colors to Formula 3. Taking part in the MRF Challenge, Schumacher raced in India where he finished in third place. Here he won four races and took nine podiums and two pole positions.
In 2017, Mick made his official debut in the FIA Formula 3 competition. Driving for Prema Powerteam, he finished in 12th place, landing a spot on the podium only once in Monza. However, in 2018, Schumacher came back from 10th place in the championship to win five straight races and end up on top by the end of the season.
5 formula 2
Despite the shocking turnaround Mick managed in Formula 3, his Formula 2 season was simply dominant. Mick completed two full seasons in Formula 2 before being headhunted by multiple Formula 1 teams itching to have the driver join their ranks.
Despite his first season in Formula 2 ending in 12th place, Schumacher bounced back in 2020. During this season, Schumacher managed another five straight wins from Spain to Monza, securing his sport as the F2 Champion.
4 Ferrari Driver Academy
Initially designed by Ferrari legend, Felipe Massa, Ferrari founded their Driver Academy in 2009. This academy was designed to seek out and mentor young drivers throughout the various league and levels of motorsport to hopefully drive for Ferrari one day.
In 2016, Ferrari reached out to Mick Schumacher to be part of their Driver Academy. This started initial sponsorship negotiations for a few years before Mick decided to officially join the program in 2019. During his time affiliated with the Ferrari Driver Academy, Mick managed to win a number of races and even the Formula 2 Championship.
3 Netflix’s Drive To Survive
Despite being the son of the 7-time World Champion, Mick’s early career was not as popular in the media as you may think. Besides making it on the cover of a few local magazines in Europe, his rise to Formula 1 was very much under the radar.
This was true until the Netflix show “Drive To Survive” dedicated an entire episode to the issues the Haas F1 team was having. During this episode, Gunther Steiner, Team Principal of Haas, had to deal with the financial difficulties of losing a major sponsor and having to make tough decisions when it came to their 2021 driver lineup.
2 Hass F1
Mick secured his seat in a very public way due to the financial struggles the Haas F1 team was going through at the time. Coming off a huge scandal that was Rich Energy, Haas didn’t take the pandemic well and was desperate to find a new title sponsor to help them make it to another season in Formula 1.
This is when Haas decided to sell a seat to Nikita Mazapin and take on Mick Schumacher. This was incredibly incredible as they were both rookies for the 2021 season. Despite this, Mick consistently outperformed Mazapin in almost every race. The dominance was so evident that Mazapin often debated whether or not they had the same car.
1 Ferrari Reserve Driver
Via: Evening Standard
Although Mick has completed a full season in Formula 1 with Haas, he still lacks the skill and experience needed to be promoted to the Ferrari F1 team. While many may be disappointed by this news, Mick has welcomed the news gracefully, knowing fully well what he needs to do to secure a seat at the legendary Italian team.
Despite this, Ferrari did name Mick Schumacher as one of their reserve drivers for the 2022 season. This is particularly impressive as Ferrari has one of the fastest cars on the grid right now. This means that Mick is very close to scoring podiums and even wins, just like his dad.
Michael Schumacher’s Son Mick Wants To Join F1 In 2021
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About The Author
Nicholas Pillay
(20 Articles Published)
Nicholas is an avid motorsport lover from South Africa. He has been obsessed with all things automotive from an early age and managed to learn about the industry directly during his time at Mercedes-Benz. Nicholas also studied and worked in Germany, where he accumulated over five years of experience in the marketing and automotive industry. Nicholas is also a passionate Formula 1 fan, patiently awaiting Lewis Hamilton’s 9th World Championship.
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