Mick Schumacher to share Ferrari F1 reserve role with Giovinazzi in 2022
Ferrari has named Mick Schumacher as its Formula 1 reserve driver for 11 of next year’s 23 races, splitting the role with Antonio Giovinazzi.
Schumacher will enter his second season in 2022 with Haas, having graduated to F1 this year as a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy. The 2020 Formula 2 champion, he is the son of seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher, who won five titles with Ferrari in the early 2000s.
While Schumacher will be racing full-time for Haas, he will act as Ferrari's reserve for 11 races next season. It means he would switch teams should full-time Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc or Carlos Sainz be unavailable, as agreed with Haas.
"It will be his second season next year, he is a Ferrari driver, coming from the Ferrari academy," said Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto. "I'm very happy that he can be part of the team as a reserve driver whenever that will be necessary, but hopefully not."
For the remaining 12 races, Giovinazzi will continue to serve as Ferrari's reserve driver, having been on a similar deal to Schumacher through 2021. Giovinazzi lost his seat at Alfa Romeo at the end of this season, and has since moved into Formula E, where he will race for Dragon.
Binotto confirmed that Giovinazzi would also be available for Ferrari customer teams Alfa Romeo and Haas next year if either required a reserve driver.
Antonio Giovinazzi, Alfa Romeo Racing C41
Photo by: Alfa Romeo
Schumacher failed to score any points in his rookie F1 season with the backmarker Haas squad, but Binotto was impressed by his rate of development and progression through the year.
"The reason we've got a Ferrari Driver Academy is to identify who can be the Ferrari driver for the future, and part of it is if you are doing well, no doubt that you might have opportunities," said Binotto.
"I think Mick through the season did well. He improved himself, not only in terms of consistency, but also in terms of speed.
"If I look at the last races, he was a lot closer to the cars ahead, while Haas didn't really develop the car at all. So the fact that he was closer is he proved that he had a good improvement on the speed itself."
Binotto felt it was also important to ensure that at least one of Ferrari's reserve drivers for next year had experience with the new-style cars planned for 2022.
"Those cars will be really a lot different to the current one for driving style, and I think it will be important to have one driver that knows those cars as a reserve driver," Binotto said. "I can still count on Antonio because he's a good driver, he has proved to be a good driver.
"Antonio will have a full programme of simulator to bring him up to speed in terms of 2022 driving style."
Related video
Honda: Verstappen F1 title reward for belief in its engine technology
Horner to remain as Red Bull F1 team principal until at least 2026
The “glorified taxi” driver central to F1’s continued safety push
As the driver of Formula 1’s medical car, Alan van der Merwe’s job is to wait – and hope his skills aren’t needed. James Newbold hears from F1’s lesser-known stalwart.
When BMW added F1 'rocket fuel' to ignite Brabham's 1983 title push
There was an ace up the sleeve during the 1983 F1 title-winning season of Nelson Piquet and Brabham. It made a frontrunning car invincible for the last three races to see off Renault's Alain Prost and secure the combination's second world title in three years
How “abysmal” reliability blunted Brabham’s first winner
Brabham’s first world championship race-winning car was held back by unreliable Climax engines – or so its creators believed, as STUART CODLING explains
The steps Norris took to reach a new level in the 2021 F1 season
Lando Norris came of age as a grand prix driver in 2021. McLaren’s young ace is no longer an apprentice or a quietly capable number two – he’s proved himself a potential winner in the top flight and, as Stuart Codling finds out, he’s ready to stake his claim to greatness…
How Fangio set the bar for Schumacher and Hamilton in F1
Juan Manuel Fangio, peerless on track and charming off it, established the gold standard of grand prix greatness. Nigel Roebuck recalls a remarkable champion.
How Russell sees his place in the Mercedes-Hamilton F1 superteam
George Russell joining Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes this year gives it arguably the best line-up in Formula 1 – if it can avoid too many fireworks. After serving his apprenticeship at Williams, Russell is the man that Mercedes team believes can lead it in the post-Hamilton era, but how will he fare against the seven-time champion? Motorsport.com heard from the man himself
How F1 pulled off its second pandemic season and its 2022 implications
OPINION: The Formula 1 season just gone was the second to be completed under the dreaded shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, but in many ways it was much more ‘normal’ than 2020. Here’s the story of how the championship’s various organisers delivered a second challenging campaign, which offers a glimpse at what may be different next time around
The adapt or die mentality that will shape F1's future
As attitudes towards the motor car and what powers it change, Formula 1 must adapt its offering. Mark Gallagher ponders the end of fossil fuels