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Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff believes that Mick Schumacher deserves another opportunity to be on the F1 grid.
The German driver lost his seat in Formula 1 at the end of 2022 after being at Haas for two seasons. Schumacher would be replaced by Nico Hulkenberg going forward.
The son of F1 legend Michael Schumacher, would then be given a lifeline in the sport. After his dad spent three years at Mercedes, Schumacher would join the Brackley team as their reserve driver for the 2023 campaign.
Schumacher was able to drive the W14 for the first time at testing in Barcelona back in June, stating that he “loved every bit” of the experience.
However, with Lewis Hamilton and George Russell recently signing two-year contract extensions at Mercedes, it looks very unlikely that Schumacher will get an opportunity to drive for the Silver arrows on a permanent basis.
Despite most of teams having already confirmed their driver line-up for 2024, Schumacher is hoping to be on the grid next season at the latest. However, he still might have a chance of returning to the sport next year with Logan Sargeant’s place at Williams not guaranteed as of yet.
Wolff has high praise for Schumacher
Speaking to formula1.com, Wolff has praised Schumacher for his work with the team on and off track as he believes the German driver deserves to be back on the grid.
“I think he deserves to be on the grid,” Wolff said of Schumacher. “The moment you’re not feeling confident in a car for a long period, the more pressure you put on yourself, the less good you perform, and I think this happened at Haas.”
“He’s quick. If you win F3 and F2, there is high potential in you, and he was never able to show it. I’m glad we have a third driver that I know will do the job if one of ours eats a bad fish!”
“But the contribution in the simulator is tremendous and that makes us sometimes do these big jumps from Friday to Saturday because he’s driving his socks off overnight.”
Feature Image Credit: (Photo by ANP via Getty Images)