F1 News: Ralf Schumacher warns Alonso setting 'DANGEROUS' precedent

F1 News

Schumacher warns Alonso setting 'DANGEROUS' precedent

Ralf Schumacher has warned F1 about the 'dangerous' age of their drivers.

Originally written by Sheona Mountford. This version is a translation.

Saturday 16 March 2024 19:00

Former F1 driver, Ralf Schumacher, has warned the sport about the dangers of favouring older drivers on the grid.

Drivers are extending their careers for longer, with top drivers such as Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton, aged 42 and 39 respectively, showing no signs of slowing down.

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Teams have also opted for more experienced line-ups, with Haas' Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg both in their 30s, leaving little room for young drivers to make a start on the grid.

The previous two F2 champions, Felipe Drugovich and Theo Pourchaire, have failed to make the jump up to F1, with drivers like Liam Lawson also waiting in the wings.

Schumacher warns F1 about excluding younger drivers

“It was very important that someone [Bearman] came, was thrown in and achieved a good result. Every team was almost afraid to take on new drivers. Hopefully it will lead to new drivers coming back.”

“When the sponsors, the investors, the fathers no longer believe in supporting the offspring because they won’t get anywhere afterwards anyway. And we're talking about square sums that have to come back somewhere. And then at some point no one will be interested in it anymore. I think that’s dangerous.”

Lewis Hamilton Fernando Alonso Liam Lawson Haas Nico Hulkenberg Kevin Magnussen