Could Mick Schumacher be handed a F1 2023 lifeline by Williams?

Williams boss Jost Capito very much considers Mick Schumacher as one of their options to replace Nicholas Latifi for 2023.

It had been expected for several months that Williams would have an upcoming vacancy for 2023, Nicholas Latifi having struggled to impress alongside Alex Albon in the FW44.

There were already strong indications that the Canadian racer would be leaving thanks to an Alpine reveal, the team confirming that their reserve Oscar Piastri had a Williams seat for 2023 on the table, before he signed with McLaren as part of that messy contract saga.

And ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix, it was confirmed that Williams and Latifi would part ways at the end of the 2022 campaign.

Who will replace him then? Well, there are a few options, with Schumacher one of those most heavily linked with a move to the team.

Despite following a positive trend with his performance level in 2022, his future with Haas and in Formula 1 in general is very much in doubt.

And with Schumacher seemingly on the market, Williams certainly hold an interest in his services.

“Yes, of course,” Capito told RTL/ntv when asked if Schumacher was a candidate. “Mick is an option, he also deserves to stay in Formula 1. We’ll see if that happens, but he’s definitely an option for us.”

Continuing on the subject of a Schumacher possibly behind the wheel of a Williams, Capito said with a smile: “That would certainly be charming.”

He added that Schumacher possesses the potential to “really move forward and be a very good driver in Formula 1”.

“He is now in his second year, if you look at George Russell, he made mistakes in his second year at Williams and still developed,” Capito continued.

“Formula 1 is very complex and the step from Formula 2 is so big because the cars are so complex and technically more demanding. You have to learn that, you have to give a driver two years to get there and show what he can do in the third year.”

Another name strongly linked is Williams Academy star Logan Sargeant, the American racer currently P3 in the Formula 2 standings with two more races to go.

He must finish in the top five in order to qualify for a super licence, and is set to make his FP1 debut with Williams at his home race, the United States Grand Prix.

“He’s also on the list,” said Capito of Sargeant’s chances.

Williams may be only lifeline for Mick Schumacher

As time has gone on, the situation for Schumacher has seemingly become more and more precarious.

His chances of staying at Haas appear to be fading, team boss Guenther Steiner publicly saying that the German racer lacks consistency, while Haas’ power unit supplier Ferrari are also set to be cutting ties with Schumacher as a Ferrari Driver Academy member come the end of the season.

Alongside Williams, Alpine was the other potential opening for Schumacher, with his friend and would-be team-mate Esteban Ocon making it clear that he would like to race alongside Schumacher, though would not look to influence the decision of his team.

Alpine though are looking to recruit an experienced driver who can hit the ground running to replace Fernando Alonso, with Pierre Gasly’s switch from AlphaTauri to Alpine seemingly set to happen once a deal to bring Nyck de Vries to AlphaTauri gets over the line.

For Schumacher then, it would seem that Williams are the final remaining possibility for him to stay on the grid.

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