Gunther Steiner says "nothing good" came from Mick Schumacher's FP1 crash at the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix - and that he hadn't spoken with the German. During the closing stages of a wet first practice at Suzuka, Schumacher was on his way back to the pits when he lost control in the wet conditions and spun at Dunlop Curve into the barriers. He blamed aquaplaning and the damage was substantial enough to rule him out of FP2 in the afternoon as Haas deemed a chassis change was necessary. Talks about Schumacher's future at the team have been intensifying in the last couple of weeks but speaking after the session, Steiner was not happy with his driver for the mistake - the only one that led to someone hitting a wall on a rainy Friday.
Steiner not happy with Schumacher
After damaging two chassis in Saudi Arabia and Monaco - Steiner gave Schumacher a hurry up mid-season which led to improved form - with the Haas looking quick at Suzuka in the hands of teammate Kevin Magnussen. Speaking about the incident at Turn 7, Steiner said that "nothing good had come from the crash. "Sometimes less is more," he said when asked if he had given Schumacher a bollocking. "I didn't speak with him. "At some stage, race drivers need to know there is spray and you cannot see and there was water before. "I am not out there driving, telling how difficult it is, but this job is not easy you know? "In the end, it was self-inflicted. There was spray, there was water but we all know that. There was nothing surprising."
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Mick Schumacher found the barrier on his way back to the pits at the end of FP1 😣 #JapaneseGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/rvsZWOlCoM — Formula 1 (@F1) October 7, 2022
Schumacher chassis could be saved
Steiner believes the work done to repair the chassis could mean that it is saved for the future, but the team need to carry out inspections before they make a decision. "We have to see if we can repair it," said Steiner to Austrian TV channel Servus TV. "But at the moment we are exchanging the chassis with various related parts." Schumacher ended the first practice session seventh quickest having only completed 13 laps on his first visit to the track in Formula 1. As for his future prospects on staying with the team, Steiner explained that: "I don't want to go into that at all. "It is completely irrelevant now to be busy with ifs and buts in this regard."
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