“He’s better than half of the F1 drivers” - Mick Schumacher’s surname hindering his prospects according to legendary Ferrari boss

Former Ferrari boss Jean Todt has expressed his vote of confidence in Mick Schumacher. The legendary F1 team principal claimed that the 25-year-old is better than half of the F1 drivers currently on the grid.

Mick Schumacher won the 2020 F2 championship and made his F1 debut for Haas the following season. Paired with Kevin Magnussen in his second season, he struggled to make an impression. Then Haas team principal Guenther Steiner showed him the exit door, leading him to join Mercedes as a reserve driver.

Jean Todt, one of Michael Schumacher's closest allies, suggested Mick Schumacher's kind nature might have been a disadvantage in the fiercely competitive world of Formula 1. In a recent interview with Bild, he said:

"I don't know if Mick is one of the best drivers around, but he is better than half of the Formula 1 drivers. Maybe Mick is too kind, in F1 you have to stick your elbows out. (translated from Italian)"

According to Jean Todt, the 'Schumacher' surname is more of a burden for the 25-year-old. The surname carries immense expectations due to his father's illustrious career in F1.

Todt added that Mick Schumacher faced unreasonable expectations during his time at Haas. He also suggested that Mick couldn't show his true potential in the uncompetitive Haas equipment.

"Many think it is an advantage, but it has become a disadvantage. The expectations placed on him were unreasonable and the car was not competitive. He has never been able to show his potential. The pressure he was subjected to was unfair. And I know, because I was also team principal, that a driver's performance suffers immediately if he doesn't feel comfortable," he added.

Mick Schumacher continues to serve as a Mercedes reserve driver, while also participating in the WEC for Alpine's Hypercar project.

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Mick Schumacher reflects on his Le Mans 24 Hours debut

The 25-year-old recently made his Le Mans 24 Hours debut, sharing the #36 Alpine A424 Hypercar with Nicolas Lapierre and Matthieu Vaxivière.

Both factory teams had to retire from the race due to engine issues, with Mick Schumacher's car being retired before the six-hour mark. Despite the DNF result, he insisted that there were plenty of positives to take from the team's debut in the Hypercar category.

"We were very fast up to that point, which is a very big positive. We had an engine issue, which led us to retiring both cars, unfortunately. But again, I think not to have too much focused on the bad sides, but actually more focus on positives," he was quoted by RacingNews365.

"We've been here for many, many days, driving around this track for quite a while. And we've learned a lot about it, we've prepared it. I think we grew together as a team, we managed to put stuff behind us, in form of issues that we've encountered," he added.

Schumacher is impressed with the pace but emphasizes that the issues with the engine need to be analyzed and understood.