"His focus in the Sprint race wasn't the right one"- Mick Schumacher's attitude wasn't 'great' before 2022 F1 Austrian GP, says Haas chief engineer

Haas F1's chief race engineer Ayao Komatsu has criticized Mick Schumacher's attitude during the 2022 F1 Austrian GP. Schumacher was unhappy that he ended his sprint race in P9, behind his teammate Kevin Magnussen, and was critical of the team later on.

Komatsu has now opened up on the situation, revealing the team's disappointment with the German driver. He said:

“Mick was behind Kevin and that frustrated him. His focus in the Sprint race wasn’t the right one. We talked about that afterwards. We talked before the Sprint race about how we would do it as a team. But what he did after that wasn’t great, and what he said after that wasn’t great either.”

Schumacher held up a brilliant defense against Lewis Hamilton for a while at the Red Bull Ring. This provided teammate Magnussen with some relief as he maintained his P7 position. He managed to earn two points for the team, while Hamilton later pushed Mick Schumacher down to a P9 and out of the points.

The 23-year-old was fairly disappointed and expressed it on team radio, where he said:

“I don’t agree like seriously.”

The German, however, was reassured that this would be discussed during the post-race debriefing. Notably, these comments have been made as Schumacher's contract with Haas soon reaches an end.

---

F1 managing director explains major difference between Mick Schumacher and his father

Ross Brawn recently opened up about a big reason why Mick Schumacher needs a little more time in F1. Amidst constant comparisons with his father Michael Schumacher, the former Ferrari man noted the differences between the father-son duo.

This comes after Schumacher Jr. was under hefty criticism for underperforming, with many questioning his talent following a mixed second season with Haas. Brawn, however, thought otherwise, saying:

“He’s different from his father, who was always immediately on the limit. Mick needs a little longer, but in the end, he also won the titles in the junior classes. He is very talented, has 100% inherited his father’s work ethic, and is extremely capable of improvement. That is crucial.”

Schumacher Jr. was under threat after being in crashes and scoring no points during the start of the season. Though he has indeed improved now, the driver still has some major convincing to do.

Haas F1 is not convinced that Mick Schumacher is the driver they need in 2023. In fact, boss Guenther Steiner has openly admitted to looking at other options. Currently, no one knows for sure if Schumacher even has a seat for next year.