Michael Schumacher was skiing with his son Mick (pictured) when he suffered his accident (Picture: Getty)
Mick Schumacher has opened up on his relationship with his father, Michael Schumacher, and revealed how he has had to ‘do it all on his own’ in racing since the Formula One legend’s skiing accident.
In December 2013, Schumacher snr hit his head on a rock and suffered a serious brain injury while skiing with his then 14-year-old son Mick in the French Alps.
The iconic former Ferrari driver, one of the most decorated F1 stars in the history of the sport, has not been seen in public in the intervening years and the Schumacher family have been fiercely protective of his privacy.
As such, details surrounding Schumacher’s condition have never been released, with only those closest to the 55-year-old granted access throughout over a decade of silence.
There were reports last month that Schumacher had attended his daughter Gina-Marie’s wedding with husband Ian Bethke in Majorca, giving F1 fans a glimmer of hope of one day seeing the German again.
Some media outlets have suggested that Schumacher may attend more events following the marriage but the veil of secrecy is still yet to be lifted and the future remains unclear for the seven-time world champion – from the outside at least.
However, in his new book, Inside Mercedes F1, author Matt Whyman got the chance to speak with Mick, 25, Schumacher’s eldest child, about what it was like growing up with such a competitive father whose face is known around the world.
Schumacher snr has not been seen in public since suffering a severe brain injury in 2013 (Picture: Getty)
‘I was a crazy kid – everything my dad did, I did,’ Mick Schumacher, himself a driver in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Alpine, explained.
‘I started karting aged three. I was six when I first went scuba diving. Aged ten I was skydiving. My dad was always very open to me trying out whatever I wanted to do and racing is all I wanted to do, because I enjoyed it the most.
‘He was really supportive and a lot of fun, but could also be challenging. One time in a karting race I braked very late going into a corner and gained a lot of time. When I told him about it, he said, “Yes, but you should have braked like that in every corner!”
‘Whenever he felt like I was not taking it seriously, he would say, “Mick, would you rather go and play football with your friends? If so, we do not need to do all of this”. I insisted that I wanted to race and he said, “Okay, then let’s do it properly”. So we started doing more European karting and I was getting better.’
Schumacher snr won seven world titles across his illustrious F1 career (Picture: Getty)
Schumacher had the support of his dad while rising through the ranks but was forced to go it alone from 2013, instead leaning on ‘technical’ pieces of advice he had picked up from his old man before the accident.
‘Then my dad had his accident,’ he recalled.
‘I started racing in the Formula classes the year after and from then on I had to do it all on my own.
‘But I definitely learned a lot of technical points from him that I still use today, as well as from his coaching. And I have always been very resilient. Whenever I got hurt I would jump like on, and I am still like that, in fact.’
Schumacher is a reserve driver with Mercedes (Picture: Getty)
Schumacher would go on to follow his father into F1, making his debut for Haas at the Bahrain Grand Prix in 2021, where he finished in 16th place.
In late 2022, Ferrari announced they would be ending their time with Schumacher and the Swiss-born driver has spent the last two seasons as a reserve with Mercedes.
Schumacher had hoped to make a return to the big time with Sauber but the Audi-owned team confirmed that youngster Gabriel Bortoleto had been selected as Nico Hulkenberg’s partner earlier this week.
‘The hope was there until the end that Mick would get a chance. But another new, young face in Formula One, I like that,’ Mick Schumacher’s uncle, Ralf, said of the decision.
‘Mick has been through a lot in the last year and a half, like at Alpine when he found out via a post that he was not in the car.
‘Formula One is a crazy business. You saw it with Franco Colapinto, who is now in the limelight. If you get the chance, something can happen. But I think it will be difficult [for Mick] after such a long time.’
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