Mick Schumacher gives clarity on potential 2026 IndyCar switch after failed F1 stint

Mick Schumacher has shared that he would be open to racing in IndyCar in 2026. The former F1 driver and son of Michael Schumacher is set to participate in his first IndyCar test in October this year.

The 26-year-old will drive for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, where his dad won F1's US Grand Prix five times during his career. Unfortunately for Mick Schumacher, he was unable to live up to the expectations the F1 paddock had of him being the son of a seven-time F1 champion.

During his two-year stint with Haas, the German scored points in only two races, with a P6 finish as his best result. The then-Guenther Steiner-led team axed him after 2022, but Mercedes came to his rescue, signing him as its reserve driver.

In 2024, he joined Alpine to compete in the World Endurance Championship, having found no takers in F1. Schumacher is in his second season in WEC, but when asked by Autosport if a return to open-wheel racing is still something desirable, the 26-year-old replied:

"One hundred per cent – I have always wanted to do single-seaters. Sportscars has been fun, [but] single-seaters is something I burn for and I love, and I am excited to get back into it."

Mick Schumacher described IndyCar as "a great option," and highlighted how the appeal of the driver competitiveness in the premier American open-wheel racing series attracts him.

“IndyCar has some great talent, and you can see that the races are pretty fun and there are a lot of battles going on. Also, lots of guys out there I have raced against in the junior formulae, and it will be interesting to see them. I do want to try out some different classes. I think it will be very different to this (racing in Hypercar in the WEC), but also, I guess, different to F1," he added.

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Mick Schumacher has an outside chance of driving for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing in IndyCar in 2026

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing car at the NTT INDYCAR Series Snap-On Milwaukee Mile 250 - Source: Getty

Mick Schumacher's performance during the IndyCar test at the IMS road course could land him a seat with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Though the team already has three drivers under contract for its three entries - Graham Rahal in the No. 15 Honda, Rookie of the Year Louis Foster in the No.45 Honda, and Devlin DeFrancesco in the No. 30 Honda - DeFrancesco's seat remains under doubt with performance-related exit clauses reportedly in the picture.

Moreover, Schumacher also gets to test the RLL car at the track where it performed best in the 2025 season. All three drivers had qualified in the Top 6. Unfortunately, their race pace wasn't as superior, and the results were mediocre, barring Rahal securing P6.

Mick Schumacher, driving for RLL, will also bring two of motorsport's most successful families together. Three-time IndyCar champion and 1986 Indy 500 winner Bobby Rahal co-owns the team. His son Graham Rahal, an IndyCar veteran who claimed earlier this year that the team feels on the cusp of something big after 2025, will most likely carry the torch to take the team to greater heights once he retires.