Mick Schumacher has revealed a key detail that left him “quite shocked” as he got up to speed at the Mercedes Formula 1 team in a reserve driver role.
Schumacher joined Mercedes after the conclusion of the 2022 F1 campaign as he was dropped by Haas following two years on the grid.
The 24-year-old has been trackside at the opening rounds of the 2023 season and is on standby to jump into the W14 car if needed.
However, he is also working in the simulator and aiding the development of the car, which has started the current campaign off the front-running pace.
Despite attending just three races in his new position, Schumacher believes he is already taking on useful knowledge to better himself as a driver.
“It’s also been fascinating working with Lewis [Hamilton] and George [Russell],” Schumacher said, writing in a ‘diary’ piece for Mercedes.
“It’s an interesting period for me as I get to look over and work with two fantastic drivers, which you don’t always get to do.
“I’ve learned a lot about what’s important in terms of approaching race weekends; I feel like I’ve already gained so much knowledge to add to my skillset.
“I didn’t think I would have learned and gained so much so early into my role.”
Schumacher is also present in engineering briefings and admits that he is shocked by the huge amount of communication that is occurring within the team.
“As a driver, you usually do not get to hear what is going on between all the engineers while you are out on the track, so listening in during the sessions has been extremely interesting,” he said.
“I was quite shocked at the season opener in Bahrain, I did not expect the sheer amount of exchange that happens.
“You don’t know what you’re missing until you are actually part of it.
“What I really appreciate in working with those engineers is that they are genuinely listening to you and your opinion matters, and what is special from an emotional side is that many people who are working for the team now were working here when my dad was driving.”
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