David Schumacher, the son of former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher, is currently immersed in his DTM racing pursuits. Despite focusing on touring car racing, the 21-year-old remains determined to chase his dream of Formula 1. The youngster isn’t short of an opinion or two on his cousin Micks’ plight in the sport.

In an interview with Sport1, Schumacher expressed his fascination with Formula 1, referring to it as the flagship model and premier class of motorsport in every aspect. Although he is committed to his current racing series, he remains open to what the future holds and the possibility of transitioning to F1.

“It’s difficult to say. At the moment I’m concentrating fully on touring car racing, that’s my focus. I can’t foresee what comes after that. That will develop over the course of the year,” says the young German.

“It fascinates me extremely. It is the flagship model, the premier class of motorsport – in every respect.”

 

Family name double-edged sword

David is the son of former Formula One driver Ralf Schumacher, the nephew of the legendary seven-time Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher, and the cousin of racing driver Mick Schumacher.

Having the renowned surname Schumacher has its perks and drawbacks. David acknowledged that it wasn’t a disadvantage in the junior categories, but he also acknowledged the mounting pressure that comes with the name. Mistakes and achievements tend to be closely scrutinized by the media, with the positives often overlooked.

“It was definitely not a disadvantage in the junior categories,” said the DTM youngster.

“People take a closer look. Mistakes like the one at the Norisring – let’s call it that – are tried by one or the other to exploit in the media. The positive things tend to go under. That’s a pity, but nothing can be changed,” regrets Schumacher.

 

 

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F3 to DTM

David made the move from Formula 3 to the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) to take on new challenges. A series of crashes and retirements, including a notable incident with three-time DTM champion René Rast at the Nürburgring, led to criticism of his driving conduct.

Despite some challenging races, David’s best performance of the 2022 first DTM season came at Spa-Francorchamps, where he finished eleventh, narrowly missing out on the points positions. Nevertheless, the weekend resulted in a grid penalty for Race 2 due to multiple track limit infractions. The season finale saw him involved in a collision with Thomas Preining, resulting in a fracture of his lumbar vertebrae. Ultimately, David ended the season in 28th place without scoring any points, leading him to describe it as a challenging and unsatisfactory year.

In the 2023 season, David opted to also compete in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup. Representing Winward Racing, he teamed up with Marius Zug and Miklas Born to tackle new racing endeavours.

 

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Mick’s time at Haas unfair

During the Sport1 interview, David also offered his perspective on his cousin Mick Schumacher’s F1 journey. Regarding Mick’s debut season at Haas:

“Mick’s problem was that he couldn’t really measure himself against his teammate Nikita Mazepin in his debut year. Both were newcomers and Mazepin, whom he dominated, was no benchmark,” clearly not rating the Russian.

David emphasised that as a junior driver, having a strong teammate to compete with is vital for development.

“It wasn’t until his second year that he had a strong driver as a teammate in Kevin Magnussen. I don’t think Haas gave him enough time to develop under the circumstances,” said Schumacher.

 

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Looking at Mick’s experience at Haas, David voiced his opinion that the team didn’t give him enough time to grow and develop under the given circumstances. As a substitute driver at Mercedes, Mick now has the opportunity to learn and improve in a more relaxed environment, which he may not have had at Haas.

David expressed hope that Mick would get another chance in F1, believing that he would undoubtedly prove himself if given the opportunity.

“I hope he gets another chance. If he does, he’ll convince, I’m sure of that,”

For now, David remains focused on his DTM career, with the possibility of a future in Formula 1 always in his sights.

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From P14 to P1 🤯@Max33Verstappen was simply unstoppable in Belgium last year! 🚀#BelgianGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/o0mHTfOXvy

— Formula 1 (@F1) July 27, 2023