Mick Schumacher looking to move on from Bahrain mistake
Mick Schumacher had a rather quiet start to his Formula 1 career in the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix. Driving what was essentially the slowest car in the field, the German rookie did the best he could by outqualifying teammate Nikita Mazepin and going on to finish ahead of him in the race.
However, it was not all smooth sailing for the second-generation driver. On the first lap following the Safety Car period, Schumacher was caught unawares by his cold tires and spun in Turn 4. To his credit, he brushed it off and went on to finish the race without any more mistakes.
Talking to the press after the race, Mick Schumacher said: "I made a mistake in Turn 4 after the safety car restart. Once the tires are not in the window, the grip was very low, and that’s just something I have to understand better, that’s something I have to learn. I obviously made a mistake now and that’s something I will keep with me for a very long time and I will try to understand why and then will move on from there and learn from it.”
It's been a lifelong dream: Mick Schumacher
Despite the early setback, Mick Schumacher revealed he was very happy with how the weekend panned out, as he was finally able to fulfill his lifelong dream of racing in Formula 1 and follow in his father Michael Schumacher's footsteps.
"I think in general I should say I’m happy. Obviously it’s been a lifelong dream to be here,” he said. “I’m a bit gutted about the mistake, obviously, in Turn 4 on the restart. I just got a snap and it happened so quickly...Nevertheless, I mean 16th sounds better than it is. Obviously, we were the last car, but nevertheless, I think we did everything we should. We went through all the things we wanted to try and I definitely understood more about the car, which, obviously, I can carry through to the next weekend.”
Mick Schumacher's performance was, however, overshadowed by what Yuki Tsunoda was able to do on his debut. The Japanese driver had a stunning weekend with AlphaTauri and was able to score points in his very first race.
It remains to be seen what's in store for Mick Schumacher but he has made a decent start to get things rolling for him in Formula 1.