Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has revealed that the team have been keeping an eye on Mick Schumacher's progress amid a recent surge in form for the youngster. After a disappointing start to the season, Schumacher has been on a more successful run of form at recent weekends. The Haas driver looked to potentially be on course for his first points in F1 at the Canadian Grand Prix, before being forced to retire with a mechanical issue. However, he didn't have long to wait to break his duck, as the points came two weeks later at Silverstone with a P8 finish. One week later in Austria, Schumacher only narrowly missed out on scoring a point in the Sprint, but went on to end Sunday's race in sixth, his best-ever result in Formula 1.
Marko suggests Schumacher benefits from "pressure and criticism"
Schumacher's performances have not gone unnoticed by Marko, who thinks that the driver is thriving from facing some pressure. "Without the technical defect in Montreal, he would have finished in the points there," Marko told German media outlet RTL/ntv . "The beginnings are there – it seems he needs real pressure and criticism, then it works." Marko says that Red Bull have been following Schumacher's career for some time. "We follow young drivers in general," he added.
Schumacher's pattern spotted by Marko
During his time in junior categories, Schumacher was known for taking some time to build up before achieving success. This pattern has been noted by Marko, who explained: "It runs through his career, it was similar in Formula 3." In this instance, Schumacher finished down in 12th during his first season in 2017, but went on to win the championship the following year, with Marko stating: "With one race after the other, he suddenly became a winning driver." There was a similar scenario when Schumacher moved up to Formula 2 in 2019, having ended that campaign in 12th before clinching the title in 2020. "Something similar happened in Formula 2, and it's seemingly part of his build-up," Marko concluded. In his debut F1 season in 2021, Schumacher placed in 19th, with Haas failing to score any points. 2022 has already seen an improvement, as the German driver currently sits in 15th, having earned 12 points so far. This puts him just three points away from his friend and compatriot, Sebastian Vettel.
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