With eighth place at the British Grand Prix, Mick Schumacher has achieved a milestone in his young Formula 1 career. For the first time, the German collected world championship points. And that in a season in which he has regularly been overshadowed by his Haas teammate Kevin Magnussen.
How does Schumacher reflect on this a few days after the Silverstone moment? Were the first World Cup points a great relief after the criticism he had to take in the past few weeks?
“It was long overdue,” says the 23-year-old in Spielberg, where the Austrian Grand Prix is on the program this weekend. “We could have done that in the first races. Unfortunately, the circumstances didn’t work out.”
The fact that the Haas VF-22 is a significantly more competitive vehicle than the previous model has become apparent since the season opener. Magnussen finished fifth in Bahrain and then finished ninth in Saudi Arabia.
Better set-up, good weekend
The Dane also competed in Imola and Silverstone and already has 16 points. Now Schumacher has written for the first time. He kept flashing his speed, but rarely did everything run smoothly in the race.
“I wouldn’t say that the pressure has eased because we scored championship points, but because we had a good weekend,” says Schumacher. “It’s been a good weekend in Canada too. Now we have to keep the ball rolling.”
In the previous year, the Haas VF-21 was not competitive under the old regulations due to discontinued further development. Schumacher and his then teammate Nikita Mazepin drove at the end of the field and had no chance of making the top 10 on their own.
When, before the start of the season, the veteran Magnussen was brought back into the team instead of Mazepin, the Dane was able to impress from the start. Why did it take so much longer for Schumacher? “It was about building the set-up,” he says, looking back on the past few weeks.
“We had to find what suits me. In Baku we found the direction that we then confirmed in Canada. Since Montreal we have found our way in terms of set-up. Our approach to the tires has also been a big step forward.”
Attack on world champion Max Verstappen
In the final phase of the Silverstone race, Schumacher also challenged world champion Max Verstappen. He tried to overtake the Red Bull on the outside, but Verstappen vigorously fended off the attacks.
Does that still show the increased self-confidence that Schumacher now has? “Yes, that would have been two more points. It makes a difference for the constructors, but also for my position in the drivers’ championship. Those would have been two points that I need.”
“You always try to achieve more. I had the opportunity and the speed to do so. So why shouldn’t I try it,” says Schumacher. “We knew we had the pace to drive through the field. Then I tried to stay as close to Max as possible to have a chance. Seventh place was within reach so I had to try it. Hopefully coming soon more points.”