Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari at the end of this season has created a coveted opportunity at Mercedes for 2025, and Mick Schumacher hopes he’ll get another chance to prove himself in the pinnacle of motorsport.
Schumacher was signed up by Mercedes as its official F1 reserve driver for 2023 after the 24-year-old found himself with a driver following a two-year stint with Haas.
The young German has repeatedly been praised by George Russell and Lewis Hamilton for his development and simulator work with the Brackley squad. And while he remains grounded and committed to his current responsibilities, Schumacher still ambitions to return to the grid.
In the interim, he has been included in Alpine’s line-up for the 2024 World Endurance Championship.
However, he trusts that Mercedes is aware of his potential and hopes that his consistent performance across different disciplines will impress team boss Toto Wolff and eventually earn him a spot on Mercedes’ F1 shortlist for 2025.
“I'm still keeping an eye on Formula 1 and hopefully the dream will come true again,” Schumacher said ahead of his debut with Alpine in the WEC in Qatar.
“But in the end, it's important that I also do my things and see my role as a reserve driver - and especially my role as a WEC driver in the foreground.
“If I perform well, let's see where it takes me. I'm sure that Mercedes know what I can do.
“You've also seen it in the simulation sessions, in the junior categories and at Haas. Hopefully it'll be enough to have more people in the WEC and Formula 1 to impress."
Schumacher’s programme this season with Alpine will include eight races with the French outfit in sports car racing’s top category.
The German described his new racing environment as “unusual and challenging”, but he’s definitely looking forward to the experience.
"Having a roof over your head and not being able to see the tyres from the cockpit is something I'm not familiar with,” he said.
“There are a few things that are new to me. There will also be GT3 and LMP3 cars on the track at the same time.
"It will be unusual and a challenge. But I'm really looking forward to it.
"What will be a big factor in particular is tyre management. We start off with cold tyres and have to keep them alive for two stints.
“That requires a lot of control and self-control not to simply burn the tyre. That can also be helpful when we hopefully go back to Formula 1 at some point.”
Schumacher's presence with Alpine in the WEC begs the obvious question about whether the manufacturer's F1 outfit would be inclined to give the German a run in one of its F1 cars this season.
But Alpine team boss Bruno Famin dismissed dismissed that possibility.
“No, we cannot," he said. "We don't plan because we have a reserve driver with Jack Doohan, and Mick is the Mercedes reserve driver. The contract we have with Mick is exclusively for endurance.”
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