F1
Gene Haas: “Mick Schumacher costs us a fortune in destroyed cars”
Gene Haas was not kind to Mick Schumacher... © Antonin Vincent / DPPI
More than ever, Mick Schumacher is in the hot seat Formula 1. Already in danger since the start of the year, especially after the end of the collaboration with Ferrari, the German could lose his seat at the end of the season… and that’s not what Gene is saying Haas who will settle his case. The owner and founder of the eponymous team did not go out of his way to express his dissatisfaction with his young driver.
“Mick's future will be decided by Mick”
Interviewed on the sidelines of the race Nascar, which took place in Las Vegas, Gene Haas was very clear about the future of his protégé. "Mick's future is going to be decided by Mick, he told the Associated Press organization. We just wait. We need Mick to score points and we're trying to give him as much time as possible to see what he can do. If he wants to stay with us, he has to show us that he can score extra points. This is what we are waiting for. »
Mick Schumacher, 23, is only 16th in the championship with 12 points, while his teammate Kevin Magnussen is in 14th place, with 22 units registered. The Dane was immediately faster than the German despite a year spent away from Formula 1 and freelance work. Endurance, in the USA. If Schumacher showed some good performances this season, notably in Austria with a solid 6th place, it was the repeated accidents which tested the patience of Haas and the team management. Latest example: the crash at the very end of Free Practice 1 in Japan, when he had returned to the track to carry out a starting procedure.
A “gray area” around the extension of Schumacher
Off-track events which are enough to exasperate the mechanics but also the accountants of the American team. “If you make the slightest mistake in the choice of driver, or the strategy, or the choice of tires, it costs you millions of dollars,” explained Gene Haas in Las Vegas. I think Mick has a lot of potential, but you know, he cost us a fortune and he destroyed a lot of cars that cost us a lot of money that we don't have. Now if you bring us points, and you're (Max) Verstappen but you destroy cars, we can deal with it. But when you're in the back and destroying cars, it's very difficult. »
Asked if Schumacher has the entire last four races to prove himself to Haas, the team owner replied: “If he wins the next Grand Prix, we’ll keep him! Somewhere in between there is a gray area…” Among the drivers mentioned to replace Mick Schumacher are Antonio Giovinazzi, still linked with the Team, or Nico Hulkenberg, currently reserve pilot at Aston Martin.
ALSO READ > Steiner's disappointment after Schumacher's accident in free practice
Dorian Grangier
A young journalist nostalgic for the motorsport of yesteryear. Raised on the exploits of Sébastien Loeb and Fernando Alonso.
Read also
Comments
*The space reserved for logged in users. Please connect to be able to respond or post a comment!
2 Comment (s)
To write a comment
Bernard JOUVENE
17/10/2022 at 04:42 a.m.
Yes, Schumi Junior is an average driver who would never have made it to F1 and maybe even to F3 without his surname... so putting pressure on him is not the best thing to do! We keep it or not, period
17/10/2022 at 04:17 a.m.
, With the 3 top teams finishing in front then the Alpine and McLaren who are fighting for 4th place among the Manufacturers, it is very likely that only 9th and 10th places are possible if the Alfa / Alpha Tauri and Aston Martin do not return to the race!! So Schumi Junior under maximum pressure by the end of 2022 to save his scalp with the Yankees...