Formula 1

F1 News: Haas Chief On Schumacher’s Incidents – “I’m Not Going To Be The Scapegoat”

Haas team principal Guenther Steiner has admitted that he’s not placed “unnecessary pressure” on Mick Schumacher. In an interview with the press, he assured that “everyone is expected to perform” at F1 level.

Mick Schumacher has had a difficult season so far in 2022 with no points to his name ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix. It’s a different story for Kevin Magnussen however, who has had a great season so far with 15 points so far. This has made the Danish driver look very good value to the team after he was replaced by Nikita Mazepin in 2020.

Schumacher on the other hand, has had two very costly incidents so far this season, the most recent being in Monaco where his car split in half costing the team dearly. Because of this extra expense, Haas is now behind on new parts because they hadn’t expected to need to replace as many parts as they have.

Despite this, Steiner still backs his driver.

“I’m not going to be the scapegoat for the fact that things haven’t gone as planned for Mick this year,” Steiner told Sky Deutschland.

“The fact that he has no points is a fact. The two accidents too. No team would be happy about that. But it’s complete nonsense that we put Mick at a disadvantage or under unnecessary pressure.

“The team doesn’t ruin any chances on purpose. Nothing better can happen to us than Mick scoring points.

“I have no problem with Mick. But he has to understand that Formula 1 is a competitive sport in which everyone is expected to perform. If I put my arm around one of my drivers, he won’t be half a second faster.”

Azerbaijan was a better race for the German who started P20 and finished in P14. Although while this was helped by four drivers retiring from the race, Steiner believes this is a “step forward” after his past habits.

“It’s clear that a driver is a bit unsettled after two accidents like that,” he admitted. “It’s also clear that Baku is a place where that can easily happen again. And Montreal is not much better in that respect.

“Mick wanted to avoid another accident at all costs and finish the race. That’s why the finish was already a step forward.

“Mick must now keep his cool and bring calm back into the system. External ricochets won’t do him any good. I’m not going to let an issue that isn’t really an issue bring unrest into the team.”

Alex Harrington

Alex started racing at a young age so certainly knows his way around a car and a track. He can just about put a sentence together too, which helps. He has a great interest in the latest models, but would throw all of his money at a rusty old French classic and a 300ZX. Contact: [email protected]

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