Mick Schumacher is hoping to make his mark at Mercedes, after being appointed as the official reserve driver at Brackley for 2023.
It's a brand new chance for the 23-year-old German, who lost his full-time race seat at Haas after two seasons and 43 Grand Prix race starts.
And he hopes his arrival will also help turn things around for the team, which after eight back-to-back constructor championships ended up third in this year's standings with just one race win all season.
In a video interview for the Mercedes F1 website, Schumacher said he was "very excited" about starting a new phase in his career.
"Definitely excited about next year to see what is possible," he continued. "I saw the development the W13 has been through this year and the steps it had taken over the course of the year from a difficult start to a race-winning car.
"Hopefully I will be able to contribute a good amount to it and we will be able to fight for the world championships at the end of the year.," he continued.
His move to Mercedes has come at a significant price for Schumacher, who has been forced to cut his long-standing ties with Ferrari and its Driver Academy programme.
“The changes that are obvious since 2014, which was the last time I came here," he recalled. "[It] was like a kind of a sneaky visit, and do my first simulator session at the time.
"To see the growth in the team is immense, and it shows why the team is at the standard that it’s at right now. I’m very happy to be part of it, very excited to see more of it and get to know everybody.”
While he won't be racing in 2023 unless either Lewis Hamilton or George Russell are unwell or unavailable, Schumacher thinks that his up-to-date experience and knowledge of current F1 cars will be a huge help to the team.
"I guess it is not as common to have a reserve driver that has been driving the same era of cars," he said. "I know the tyres, I know what the car is about, what it needs in terms of driving style.
"Hopefully I will be able to contribute to that, but also maybe see what the drivers need from the outside."
"The simulator work is going to be very important," he added. "We have a lot to do so hopefully I will contribute the knowledge that I have, but also gain knowledge for myself that hopefully I can use for the rest of my career."
©Mercedes
Rumours linking Schumacher to a future role at the Audi works team in 2026 have already emerged, and Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff certainly sees Schumacher as bouncing back from his recent set-back.
“Maybe in a way, having a year off as a third driver ... can be good to reassess yourself and bring yourself in a better place and hopefully find a seat again," Wolff told a recent edition of the official F1 Beyond the Grid podcast.
"Things can go against you in your first years in F1. He was under pressure to deliver and that doesn’t help, and F1 is brutal.
"I really like Mick, and I like the family, how they have raised their kids with this unbelievably famous name. And I think he deserves a chance."
Former F1 driver Hans-Joachim Stuck agrees that a spell at Mercedes could help Schumacher get back into F1 full-time in the future.
“It is important now for Mick that he comes into a team where a young driver can feel warmth, where he can feel that they have his back," he commented this week.
“He will quickly endear himself to Mercedes with his personality and the way he works. People will quickly see what he can do.”
But former world champion Nico Rosberg says that the clock is already ticking on Schumacher's comeback chances.
“Reserve driver at Mercedes, that’s a good option to stay in F1 and keep the chances of coming back somewhere in 2024,” Rosberg told Sport1’s AvD Motor & Sport magazine
"But Schumacher would also need a good sponsor to support him financially in his comeback to the grid. If nothing comes of it in 2024, then that would probably be the end with F1.
“There would be enough nice options left for him: DTM, Formula E, IndyCar,” he continued. “These are great racing series where he could also have fun. They would be grateful to have a talent like Mick in the field.”
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