Sainz: Famous name 'no guarantee of success' for Schumacher

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Carlos Sainz warns that having an iconic family name in the annals of motorsport is no guarantee of success in Formula 1.

The Renault driver is himself the son of a two-time world rally champion. But in this instance he was referring to another famous offspring - Mick Schumacher, the 19-year-old son of seven-time F1 champion Michael.

"The name Schumacher can open the doors," admitted Sainz. "But if he doesn't win and the results do not come, he will never enter Formula 1.

"At the beginning, the pressure is enormous. All the parents would have told their children in karting that to crush Mick Schumacher would be great!"

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However the teenage Schumacher has already found success in his own right, clinching the European Formula 3 title last month after overhauling Dan Ticktum with a string of five wins in a row in September.

He's expected to complete in Formula 2 next season, but already the speculation is about when - not if - he will make the jump to F1.

"There will 100 per cent be a Schumacher back in Formula 1," Lewis Hamilton said last week. "Partly because of the name ... He’s got a great talent as his dad had, so I don’t think it will be a burden in my personal opinion.

"He will be good for the sport, to have the Schumacher name again in F1," suggested two-time champion Fernando Alonso.

Ferrari team boss Maurizio Arrivabene has hinted that his father's old team could be one of those interested in signing up the youngster.

"We will see about the future," Arrivabene said in September. "How can you say no, in Maranello, to a name like this?"

Sainz said he saw the rise of Mick Schumacher as just one more sign of a 'generational change' in the sport, with established drivers moving on or bowing out to make way for a wave of young drivers.

He himself will move from Renault to McLaren in 2019 to replace 37-year-old Alonso, who is retiring from F1 after 18 years of Grand Prix competition.

Sainz will be teamed with rookie driver Lando Norris, while another F2 graduate George Russell will be racing for Williams.

"I'm very happy that guys like George Russell and Lando Norris have the opportunity to get into these cars," he said.

"I am only 24, but in 2019 I will start my fifth season in F1. It's crazy!

"Experience is very important, so it will be interesting to see the old foxes against the younger guys."

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.