Toto Wolff and Mick Schumacher walk through the paddock at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2023 — Photo: © LAT Images

F1 Speculation

Could Schumacher have an EASIER route back into F1 than first thought?

He has his eye on a return to the sport...

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Tuesday 29 August 2023 17:27

The dust has settled on what was a brilliantly entertaining Dutch Grand Prix and, if we forget about all of the talking points at the front of the field, there was one particular moment that caught our eye.

It was on lap 16, things had dried out a bit and the chaos of the opening few laps had petered out into a more normal race, with Max Verstappen leading from the front.

Logan Sargeant got onto the kerb, spun around and slammed his car into the barriers causing the first safety car of the race. It was his second crash of the weekend, having smashed into the barriers in his first ever Q3 appearance on Saturday.

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"I don't know what happened, man! Something failed on the front right when I hit the kerb," Sargeant confessed on the team radio.

The question is, was this the final nail in the coffin for Sargeant in terms of being able to retain his seat for 2024?

Mick Schumacher smells blood at Williams

Mick Schumacher is now enjoying life as a reserve driver at Mercedes

Waiting in the wings, of course, is Mercedes reserve driver Mick Schumacher, son of seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher and a man with a couple of years of Formula 1 experience already under his belt.

He raced in 2021 and 2022 for the Haas team, with a highest finish in that time of sixth at the Austrian GP in 2022. At the end of 2022, however, Haas decided to sack Schumacher and replace him with the more experienced Nico Hulkenberg.

Many felt that Haas' treatment of Schumacher was harsh, particularly given he'd only finished 13 points behind his vastly more experienced team-mate Kevin Magnussen in 2022.

Thankfully for him, Mercedes decided to take a chance on Schumacher as their reserve driver, and he has so far been enjoying the experience of learning from seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.

It was clear to see on occasions during Mick's two seasons that he had what it took to be a successful F1 driver, although one too many mistakes is what ultimately caused Haas boss Guenther Steiner to take the decision to replace him.

Williams on the up and looking for better?

Alex Albon's performances in the Williams this season have been mightily impressive

That could also be what forces Williams' hand with Sargeant. The American is yet to score a point in F1, despite having what seems to be a fairly quick Williams car.

He has impressed at times – including last weekend when he managed to get into Q3 for the first time – but has made lots of mistakes in his debut season, like crashing within minutes of that Q3 berth.

His team-mate Alex Albon has proved that the car has performance, scoring an impressive 15 points so far this season and looking racier as the season has gone on.

The question is, has Sargeant been yet another victim of having a team-mate in supreme form, or is he not yet ready for F1?

Williams' new-found pace may be what forces their hand with Sargeant, as they will look to really challenge the upper-midfield teams next season.

Other options for Williams would include Daniel Ricciardo or a completely new challenger from a junior formula, but the likelihood is that their working relationship with the Mercedes team would make Schumacher the obvious choice.

It would be harsh on Sargeant as he hasn't really had long enough to showcase his talents but, unfortunately, F1 is a cut-throat world.