Mick Schumacher’s prospects of securing a seat with Audi in Formula 1 look slim, according to his well-known uncle, as the former Haas racer seeks to revive his career in the top echelon of motorsport.
With Nico Hulkenberg having secured one of the seats at Audi-owned Sauber for the 2025 season and beyond, speculation is rife about who might join him. Among the frontrunners is Carlos Sainz, the soon-to-be former Ferrari driver. Red Bull’s Dr. Helmut Marko has recently highlighted that Sainz is likely out of reach for most due to a substantial offer from Audi.
Andreas Seidl, tasked with steering Sauber into its new era as a full-fledged Audi works team, refuted claims of excessive financial incentives being used to attract talent like Sainz to the team. Speaking to Auto Motor und Sport, Seidl clarified, “Our approach is clearly not to motivate drivers or other employees to come to us with huge sums of money.”
He added, “We basically have the financial means of a top team, but we really think about how we can use every franc or euro sensibly and efficiently. We want to attract people who want to be part of this journey and accompany Audi’s entry into Formula 1.”
Despite being a perfect candidate to form an all-German lineup at Audi, given his current roles as a Mercedes reserve driver and part of Alpine’s Le Mans squad, 25-year-old Schumacher’s chances appear less likely. Seidl mentioned the necessity of experienced drivers to face the team’s numerous challenges, “It makes sense to have at least one experienced driver because we have to tackle many challenges at once,” Seidl noted. “So it could be two experienced drivers or one with experience and a strong rookie.”
“We are continuing to have discussions, monitoring the market, and of course monitoring the performance of Zhou (Guanyu) and Valtteri (Bottas).”
Ralf Schumacher, himself a renowned former F1 driver and Mick’s uncle, has also weighed in on the speculation. Speaking to Sky Deutschland, he tempered expectations about Mick’s immediate return to Formula 1. “Any Formula 1 opportunity that presents itself to Mick would of course be important and good,” Ralf acknowledged. “No question about it.”
“But that is still a long way off. At the moment he is in very good hands at Alpine in the endurance series, he is doing a great job there, so we’ll wait and see.”
GMM
