Aug.24 (GMM) Mick Schumacher should secure the last remaining vacancy on the 2025 grid, according to a former Formula 1 driver.
With Carlos Sainz now signed to Williams, rookie Jack Doohan securing the Alpine seat, and RB likely to field Liam Lawson, only Audi-owned Sauber is still completely undecided about its second and final place for next year.
The candidates are numerous, including incumbents Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou, and perhaps even the New Zealander Lawson or the retired Sebastian Vettel.
But Schumacher, the Mercedes reserve and Alpine WEC driver, has also been linked with the seat – to complete an all-German lineup for Audi next to Nico Hulkenberg.
Schumacher was recently a very real contender for the Alpine seat that his friend Doohan, 21, has now secured, with the pair recently going head-to-head in a shootout test.
“Mick would have had to be significantly faster than Doohan to get that seat,” Marc Surer, a former F1 driver, told formel1.de. “If they were similar, Alpine must have said ‘We’ll take our own young driver’, which makes sense.”
If Schumacher, 25, does not land the Audi job, his Formula 1 hopes are likely to be forever dashed, given that he has not contested a grand prix since losing his Haas seat at the end of 2022.
“The chances are getting smaller and smaller,” Surer admitted. “Audi is the only option left.
“Before they give another chance to Bottas, who is driving around unmotivated, they could give Mick another chance,” he added.
“I judged Mick pretty harshly as a Formula 1 driver, but also because I believe he didn’t use his talent, which I believe in. The guy is fast, which he proved in Formula 2. He also overtook really well. So there’s something in him,” Surer continued.
“He wasn’t able to show that in Formula 1, for whatever reason. Especially with (Kevin) Magnussen, he just looked a bit bad, but I think he wasn’t able to show his potential. I hope he gets another chance.”