Junior karting champion Mick Schumacher, who is currently competing in Formula 4 with Dutch side Van Amersfoort racing, is to make his Formula 3 debut this year, and it will have a very special connection. He took his maiden F4 win with the team in 2015 at the Oschersleben track in Germany.
The 17-year-old, who made his Formula 4 debut last year and won the Rookie of the Year on debut, is in talks with Italian outfit Prema, which is a junior Ferrari outfit. Angelo Rosin, the founder of European F3 team Prema Powerteam, is said to already be in talks with Mick’s manager, Sabine Kehm, who is also the longtime manager of his Formula One icon father.
Schumacher Junior tested for Prema in November of last year, with Kehm confirming the news, although there had been no talk of a contract at the time. Now, prior to the start of the season, it appears that Mick is set not only for a step up in single-seater racing, but also one with a very special connection.
His iconic father Michael Schumacher, arguably the best ever driver in Formula One, won 7 World Championships in his 21-year racing career, 11 of which were spent with Scuderia Ferrari.
Of those titles, he won five with the Maranello-based outfit, a reecord that earned him one of his most well-known nicknames – the Red Baron. He turned 47 earlier this month.
Michael is currently in an extended period of recovery following his 2013 skiing accident. Schumacher and his son had been skiing at Meribel in the French Alps when the driver skiied off piste, hit a boulder and sustained severe head injuries despite having been wearing a helmet at the time.
Placed in a medically induced coma, Schumacher regained consciousness 6 months later, and was subsequently moved back to the Schumacher family home in Switzerland, where he continues to undergo extensive rehabilitation with a 24-hour medical and care team.
FIA President and Ferrari boss Jean Todt is among the few who have been allowed to visit Schumacher in this time, with information on the driver’s condition closely guarded by his family and medical team.
Schumacher’s brother Ralf, who was also a Formula One driver with fair success, announced last year that 2016 would see the launch of his own Formula 4 team, the HTP Junior Team, leading to speculation that he would sign his nephew. Ralf’s own son, David, is said to be joining HTP.
There appears now to be credence to the 2015 rumours that Mick would move up to Formula Three, which means that spectators could see the youngster in Formula One sooner rather than later.
Current sensation Max Verstappen made a jump from Formula 3 to Formula One in the 2015 season, although new regulations have meant that this is no longer permitted – but with the younger Schumacher making quick progress, seeing him take to Formula One could be on the cards soon.
