The young Mick Schumacher, son of the legend Michael, seven times world champion, will make his F1 debut this year with the Haas car, a team that has a partnership with Ferrari, which in turn supplies the engines to the cars, and which allows, as in this case, to gain experience in the highest category for the young drivers of the car manufacturer from Maranello. In his early twenties, Mick proved to be an excellent driver by winning his second F2 title in 2020 and Ferrari did not miss the talented German driver.
According to Mattia Binotto, sporting director of Scuderia Ferrari, an early entry into Ferrari would have placed too much responsibility on Mick Schumacher and this would most likely have had a bad influence on his driving and his career. It is not necessary to rush the stages, Mick really has a long career ahead of him and it is right to start with an experience in the second row in the world championship. On the other hand, his father Michael, before literally dominating the world championship, drove Jordan in 1991, taking home very few points that season but accumulating a lot of experience, fundamental for his future.
Mick is part of the Ferrari Driver Academy (FDA) team of young talents and confirms the Italian company's strategy of investing in the talent of young drivers with Charles Leclerc (23 years) and Carlos Sainz (26 years), after the departure of the German Sebastian Vettel (33 years old) who got married to Aston Martin. Mick is a candidate to drive the official Ferrari car in the next few years but for now he has to be content with testing his skill with the 2018 SF71H, practicing on Fiorano's stake.
Mick confirmed all his excitement in sitting in the car that his father Michael drove and won between 1996-1999 and he knows that the fans will expect a lot of commitment and many positive results from him. Being the son of Michael Schumacher cannot be called an advantage, the comparisons are immediate and the possibility of falling under the weight of this name is really concrete.
The Maranello team knows all this very well and focuses a lot on the driver's growth and for this reason also wants to protect him from judgments that could be very hard. Personally, I think the company deserves praise for this choice as it certainly safeguards its investment but also the racing life of the driver. It takes a long time to build your career, made up of sacrifices and hard work, but a minimum mistake is enough to burn it down quickly.
Success is the greatest enemy for any athlete and if you don't have the right temperament to face it, you can really get hurt.
I am really very curious to see Mick Schumacher driving his first Formula 1 car and I hope for the good of the sport, and not just for Ferrari, that he can mature and give us those unforgettable emotions that his father Michael gave us in the 90s.
ITA