Mick Schumacher is experiencing what is probably the most intense week of his time as a motorsport driver. The points premiere in Silverstone was followed by trouble in the sprint race, but then came the climax with sixth place at the Austrian Grand Prix in Spielberg. Schumacher seems to have finally arrived in Formula 1.
There were 24 hours between the two performances, but also felt like worlds. On Saturday afternoon it was slightly cloudy in Spielberg, but massive dark clouds of frustration hung over Mick Schumacher. Triggered by decisions made by his team. In the sprint race, the mini edition over 24 laps, Schumacher was not allowed to pass stable rival Kevin Magnussen, slipped out of the DRS window and was then consequently conceded by Lewis Hamilton. Ninth place, points down and Mick served. Despite the lap-long spectacle with Hamilton, the 23-year-old was visibly annoyed and complained about the Haas strategy on the TV microphone.
Mick Schumacher was completely different a day later. The good mood was back. For reasons. The Haas driver had just clinched sixth place, the best result of his young Formula 1 career. There are eight World Cup points on top of his account. There are now twelve in all. The trend is steeper than the Alpen course in Spielberg.
The Austrian Grand Prix symbolizes the trend. Right from the start, Schumacher showed that he had not traveled to Styria as a backbencher, attacked Hamilton and even overtook the record champion. As the race progressed, Schumi Jr. also demonstrated why he belongs in Formula 1. Flawless overtaking maneuvers against his teammate Magnussen, Daniel Ricciardo or Guanyu Zhou seemed to give him an extra boost.
This time the team let him. Schumacher was the faster man in the team-internal comparison. The tactic was right, the car stopped. All things that cannot be taken for granted this season. Team manager Günther Steiner gave his congratulations on the radio after the end of the race. "Great job. Fantastic race. Thank you. Happy for you and the team." Previously, Mick had correctly cabled through and cheered: "We're on a roll."
A statement that is all the more important for the Schumacher camp after the season so far. After crashes and failures like in Monaco, team capo Steiner publicly counted his protégé and a discussion broke out. Which handling is right for Mick? What's next? Schumacher's future in the motorsport premier class was also publicly questioned.
Not much went together, the first nine races of the season summarized briefly: either the team or Schumacher failed. discussions? Almost always. Points? No. And just when the pressure on Schumacher was greatest, when the debate was at its peak - he just shook it off. Schumacher drove flawlessly in Canada, only one technical knockout. stopped the 23-year-old. The final liberation followed at Silverstone. At the Home of British Motor Racing, Schumacher brought home the long-awaited first points. A satisfaction. And now the confirmation. Perhaps this is even more important.
So Mick pushed the dark clouds aside with his actions. "Completely satisfied" he said with a smile on Sky. With this performance you can still collect points in many races. "I feel very good. We have a car that we can fight with and don't have to take too many risks because we have the speed. I'm very happy with the setup."
Both Haas drivers finished in the top 10 twice in a row. Last year's backbench team has become a real challenger for points. Gone are the days of fighting with "blunt weapons" (Steiner). Even Hamilton radioed almost stunned. "They're crazy fast on the straights." Recognition from the record world champion, with whom Schumacher dueled for a long time on Saturday and Sunday.
It is precisely these racing duels that make the 23-year-old stronger. Last year he was just chasing the field and had to be happy when the team's own F1 gambler Nikita Mazepin didn't intervene. As in Formula 3 and Formula 2, Schumacher is apparently taking a step forward in the second year. After races 31 and 32 it can be said: He has arrived in Formula 1. But will he stay with Haas?
With the past performances, Schumacher has created a lot of arguments for the contract poker. His working paper expires at the end of the year. At the moment everything looks like a contract extension with the US racing team. The talks are to run and be finalized over the summer. The trend is also clear here: Schumacher stays.
