His father started in the endurance classic 33 years ago. Now it’s Mick Schumacher’s turn in Le Mans. And he knows what’s important in the 24 hours.
Mick Schumacher is not too worried about the long night shift at his Le Mans debut. The 25-year-old will be taking part in the 24-hour classic of motorsport for the first time this Saturday. “I don’t think you can prepare specifically for Le Mans because the race is just so unique,” Mick Schumacher told dpa.
“Driving through the night is of course something completely different to what we are used to as racing drivers.” But it helps that he had already done a few laps during the test and got to know the track. In addition, there will be two training sessions at night before the race, which will be started by French football icon Zinédine Zidane.
Schumacher on the night shift: It will be light enough
“I also drove at night in Aragón during a test, and my teammates said that Le Mans was easier in comparison,” emphasised Mick Schumacher, explaining why this is the case: “In Aragón, it was practically pitch black on the track. In Le Mans, in addition to the many other racing cars that are driving with their lights on, some of the houses also have their lights on. So it will be bright enough.”
Mick Schumacher will compete in the Alpine Hypercar, forming a team with the Frenchmen Nicolas Lapierre (40) and Matthieu Vaxivière (29). “The biggest challenge will be to see the start and finish flags. You can’t afford to make any mistakes here, but you still have to drive fast,” emphasised Mick Schumacher. His father Michael competed in Le Mans once before his Formula 1 career in 1991. The now 55-year-old finished fifth in a Sauber-Mercedes.
Son Mick is competing in the World Endurance Championship for the first time this year. After two years with the American Haas racing team, he was no longer given a regular cockpit in Formula 1 for the 2023 season and has been a reserve and test driver for Mercedes since then. With his double commitment this year, he also hopes to increase his chances of returning as a regular driver in Formula 1.
Source: Stern
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