Mick Schumacher joins McLaren as Reserve Driver

German motor-racer Mick Schumacher has been announced as a Reserve Driver for British Formula One team McLaren. Schumacher will join McLaren’s reserve driver pool. The decision comes following an agreement between Mercedes and McLaren, who already enjoy a close partnership, with the former providing the latter with Mercedes power-units. 

Schumacher, who drove for Haas in Formula One in 2021 and 2022, lost his seat to Nico Hülkenberg, who has replaced him at Haas for the 2023 season and beyond. Schumacher was announced as the Official Reserve Driver for Mercedes in December 2022. He will also be joining INDY Car champion Alex Palou as a McLaren Reserve Driver and, should McLaren’s drivers Lando Norris or Oscar Piastri become unavailable for any race weekend, either Palou or Schumacher will fill in.

The announcement of Schumacher joining McLaren’s Reserve Driver pool was made through the British team’s social media handles, where they shared an image of the German in the McLaren race-car, getting his seat-fit done. 

At McLaren, Schumacher will team up with new McLaren boss Andrea Stella, who served as Michael Schumacher’s—Mick’s father—Performance Engineer at Ferrari between 2002 and 2006. 

Joining McLaren also gives Schumacher another option to return to Formula One apart from Mercedes. Should McLaren have a vacant seat in the future, Schumacher will be an option available for them.