Mick Schumacher fondly remembers traveling to Melbourne as a child to watch his legendary dad Michael in action at Albert Park, where he holds the lap record. The 23-year-old, now a Formula 1 driver himself, will look to follow in his father's footsteps when he races for the first time at the Australian Grand Prix this weekend.
"I'm quite excited. I'm looking forward to getting to know the track and getting to know the city as well. I've been here with my dad and have watched him race in Melbourne, that was really cool, and I'm excited to drive here myself and make my own experiences of driving in Formula 1 in Australia," the Haas driver said.
Schumacher is fortunate to be racing in Melbourne after escaping uninjured from a horror crash during qualifying at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix a couple of weeks ago. According to Channel News Asia, the Swiss-born German had to be lifted out of his wrecked car after clipping a kerb at high speed. He was airlifted to a nearby hospital for precautionary tests before being ruled out of the F1 race.
Michael Schumacher dominated at Albert Park during his heyday
Fans of Schumacher heaved a huge sigh of relief when he said afterward that he was "feeling alright." Schumacher said he is now entirely focused on conquering Albert Park, just as his father did with four race wins in his Ferrari in the early 2000s.
During that dominant stretch, the seven-time world champion set a blistering lap record of 1:24.125 back in 2004 that incredibly still stands today. Fox Sports reported that the record would likely not survive this weekend, with significant changes to the race circuit set to shave lap times at Albert Park by as much as five seconds.
Schumacher remembers his father's stunning performance in Australia quite well, "My dad holds the lap record in a 2004 Ferrari. I got the chance to drive that car, and it's an amazing car." Schumacher said they would do their own laps in a similar-looking car.
He explained that the cars now have turned back in time, and they are looking a bit more like they used to with the high front wing. Schumacher said that would make things interesting in Australia.
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Haas to race in Australia without a spare chassis
Schumacher's Haas Formula 1 team will contest the Australian Grand Prix weekend, however, without the safety net of a spare chassis on hand following his horrific crash in Saudi Arabia. Schumacher's crashed chassis is on its way back to the team's base in the United Kingdom for repairs, before it can be returned to frontline use in Formula One.
Haas team boss Gunther Steiner told Autosport that the crashed chassis could be available again for the next F1 event in Imola in two weeks once properly checked back at base. Steiner reminded his drivers to be careful with their driving as there is no spare chassis, and another crash would mean they will start again with one car.
