Mick never thought he would be racing Vettel

Jamie Woodhouse
Mick Schumacher Formula 2 title Ferrari

Mick Schumacher never thought he would be preparing to battle with Sebastian Vettel in Formula 1, but that is what will happen in 2021.

Schumacher is set to make his debut in the series with Haas in 2021 after winning the 2020 Formula 2 Championship.

As a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy, Schumacher has spent time working with the same team Sebastian Vettel called home for the past six seasons, although their connection of course goes much deeper.

In the earlier stages of his career, Vettel always looked up to Mick’s father, Michael Schumacher, and saw the seven-time former World Champion very much as a mentor.

And now, with Michael’s son set to join the Formula 1 grid, Vettel has made it clear he will always be available to help and support Mick.

Vettel is, of course, moving on to a new chapter of his career with Aston Martin for 2021, so the names Vettel and Schumacher are set for a new generation of on-track competition.

So while he is definitely looking forward to the possibility of battling head-to-head with Vettel in 2021, Schumacher never thought he would be saying it.

“Of course it’s funny, now we are racing against each other. I didn’t think I would ever say that, but I’m looking forward to it,” Schumacher told Bild.

“Seb is the one I’ve talked to the most and the one I know the best. Of course, then there are guys in Formula One who I already know from karting. But Seb I’ve known the longest.”

Mick Schumacher Haas

By linking up with Haas, Schumacher will be working under team principal Guenther Steiner who is known for his sometimes fiery temperament. This especially has been on display in the Netflix documentary series Drive to Survive, which follows the behind-the-scenes world of Formula 1.

But Schumacher has no fears of upsetting Steiner. Instead, he praised the Italian, saying he was “a super guy”.

“I think Guenther is a super guy, he is super nice, very helpful and overall a very good team boss.”

Schumacher will be joined at Haas for 2021 by fellow F2 graduate Nikita Mazepin.

The Russian racer finished the 2020 F2 season P5 in the standings with 164 points, 51 behind Schumacher.

Across the season, Mazepin took two race wins and a further four P2 finishes.

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