Toto Wolff Reveals Why Mercedes Parted Ways With Mick Schumacher

Mercedes parted ways with Mick Schumacher to allow him to pursue active racing opportunities.

Mick Schumacher - 2024 Saudi Grand Prix, Saturday - Jiri Krenek / Mercedes Press Image

Mercedes recently confirmed that Mick Schumacher would not continue as their reserve driver, allowing him to pursue his racing ambitions more directly.

Schumacher, son of the famed Formula 1 champion Michael Schumacher, had a short-lived full-time F1 career starting with Haas in 2021. After two seasons, he was replaced by Nico Hulkenberg for the 2023 season, prompting his shift to a reserve role with Mercedes. During his time with Mercedes, Schumacher was involved in various aspects such as simulator work and car testing but never had the chance to race competitively in F1.

Mercedes chief Toto Wolff stated that continuing to wait for an F1 seat did not make much sense for Schumacher. Wolff opened up on the importance of actively pursuing available racing opportunities to achieve success. Speaking to Sky German in Qatar, Wolff explained, as quoted by PlanetF1:

“He is a really great young man with the right values.

“He is very intelligent, but unfortunately, he never really got a chance in Formula 1 with the right environment.

“It has come to a point where the constant waiting makes little sense, and he now wants to race. He will certainly do that very successfully.”

Speaking about his exit from Mercedes, Schumacher explained:

“I am grateful to Toto and the entire Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team for the insight I have gained over these two years.

“They have undoubtedly made me a more experienced racing driver because I have got to know the engineering side better.

“But watching these cars race and not sitting in the cockpit myself is tough. I want to get back to focusing 100% on racing. I want to be fully committed to the sporting side of motorsport.

“Ultimately, it is racing that you want to do as a driver, it is racing that gives you that feeling you love.”

Schumacher's exit from the reserve driver role at Mercedes as opened the door for Valtteri Bottas to return to the team in 2025. The Finnish driver found himself out of his Sauber seat when the team decided to sign the current Formula 2 champion Gabriel Bortoleto. Speaking about his return to the team he drove for from 2017 to 2021, Bottas explained:

“I’m happy to finally answer the question I’ve posed over the past month. Returning home to the Mercedes family as Third Driver for 2025 is what’s next and I couldn’t be more pleased. I want to thank Toto, the team at Brackley, and everyone at the three-pointed star for welcoming me back with open arms.

“Despite the challenges of the past few years, I know that I’ve still got so much more to contribute to F1. Since I was a five-year-old kid growing up in Nastola, Finland, my focus has been on achieving success in the top tier of motorsport. I’ve been fortunate to have enjoyed many incredible moments in my 12 years of racing in F1 so far.

“As I return to the place where so many of those moments were achieved, I’m looking forward to using all the knowledge I’ve gained to help the team to perform and progress towards our goal of fighting for world championships.”