Mick Schumacher makes dad Michael's 23-year-old prophecy come true with IndyCar move

Mick Schumacher has made his father Michael Schumacher's 23-year-old prophecy come true with his recent IndyCar move. On October 13, the 26-year-old is set to make his IndyCar debut with a one-off test with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.

The test will take place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, where his seven-time F1 champion dad won five times. F1 held its US Grand Prix at the circuit until 2007. However, Michael Schumacher never raced on the 2.5-mile IMS oval.

In 2002, in the middle of his championship-winning spree with Ferrari, the German driver called the Indy 500, which took place on the said oval, a "step down" from F1, and a "dangerous" race. When further asked if the thought of other drivers attempting to win the premier IndyCar race made it look like an alluring prospect, the seven-time champion said (via CBS):

"No. People who usually cannot survive in Formula 1, they go to Indy. People who come from Indy hardly survive in Formula 1."

This statement, albeit controversial, seems to have come true in his son Mick Schumacher's case. The young German driver was axed from Haas after two underwhelming F1 seasons (2021-2022) that saw him crash multiple times. He went point-less in his rookie season and scored 12 points in his second season, courtesy of a P8 finish at Silverstone and a P6 in Austria.

Guenther Steiner with Mick Schumacher at the F1 Dutch Grand Prix - Practice - Source: Getty

However, then-Haas Team Principal Guenther Steiner wasn't satisfied with Schumacher's performance and replaced him with Nico Hulkenberg for 2023. After a year on the sidelines, Mick Schumacher jumped to the World Endurance Championship with Alpine. He has been more successful there, with three podiums so far, with two races remaining in the 2025 season.

Though he wants to return to F1, the German driver has no takers, with a 2026 return also ruled out. But the 26-year-old hasn't lost his passion for open-wheel racing, which has now brought him to America's premier open-wheel racing series, IndyCar.

Mick Schumacher's IndyCar test brings two of motorsport's biggest families together

Bobby Rahal at the Rolex 24 at Daytona - Source: Getty

Mick Schumacher's IndyCar will bring two of motorsport's most successful families together. Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing is co-owned by Bobby Rahal, a three-time IndyCar champion and winner of the 1986 Indy 500.

Upon retiring from racing, he founded RLL, which has now won 30 races in the premier American open-wheel racing series and also competes in the IMSA SportsCar championship. His son, Graham Rahal, is an IndyCar veteran with six race wins under his belt.

RLL's one-off union with Mick Schumacher is bound to be exciting news in the motorsport world, and could turn into something bigger. Though the IndyCar team has all three drivers locked in 2026 on paper, Devlin DeFrancesco's future remains uncertain because of certain performance-related clauses in his contract.

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing president Jay Frye was excited about this Schumacher-Rahal union.

"This is an amazing opportunity for RLL to test an elite talent like Mick and bring two legendary motorsports families together," Frye said in a press release.

Though RLL has been struggling for pace in the last few seasons, the team was incredibly quick at the IMS road course this year. All three drivers made it to the Fast 6 in qualifying - Graham Rahal secured P2, rookie Louis Foster behind him in P3, and DeFranesco in P6.

Though their race pace wasn't as supreme, the data gathered then would help the team evaluate Mick Schumacher's performance in a better manner and also give the former F1 driver a higher pace baseline to work with.