Mercedes not only supplies the McLaren team with Formula 1 engines, but also with a replacement driver, should the worst come to the worst: Mick Schumacher is also available to the traditional British racing team as a reserve driver alongside the Silver Arrows. There he meets a close confidante of his father Michael.
In the forthcoming Formula 1 season, Mick Schumacher will not only be available to the Mercedes works team as a reserve driver. The traditional racing team McLaren can also fall back on the services of the 23-year-old if necessary, the English confirmed.
"Welcome to the family, Mick," McLaren tweeted just over a month before the start of the season on March 5 in Bahrain. Corresponding agreements with engine customers are quite common at Mercedes, and McLaren also gets its drive from the Silver Arrows.
With the team from Woking, Schumacher can be used if one of the regular drivers fails, in the new season these are Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. In addition, the German at McLaren will work with the new team boss Andrea Stella, the Italian was once his father Michael Schumacher's performance engineer at Ferrari.
At the end of 2022, Schumacher had lost his regular place at Haas. He will be replaced by compatriot Nico Hulkenberg in the future. The 74th season of the motorsport premier class begins at the end of February with testing at the Bahrain International Circuit, where two weeks later the first of 23 planned race weekends will be held. In his main job, Schumacher is then a replacement and development driver for Mercedes behind regular drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.
Other Mercedes engine customers include Aston Martin and Williams. Last year, Nyck de Vries, a replacement for the Silver Arrows, stepped in at Williams on short notice. The Dutchman was so convincing that AlphaTauri recruited him as a regular driver for this year. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff recently stated that he would let Schumacher go again with such an offer.
Meanwhile, AlphaTauri team boss Franz Tost reported in an interview with RTL/ntv that he had seriously considered signing Schumacher, but this was not realized for "political reasons". The German was a member of the Ferrari Academy until last year, while AlphaTauri belongs to the Red Bull universe - Mercedes' two major competitors.
