Mick Schumacher looks completely calm. There’s the feeling, even for a fleeting moment, that Formula One and the outside world are millions of miles away. This feels like a safe space to him, the eerie quiet of the North Texas ranch broken only by the raucous engine noises of Schumacher’s off-road Can-Am Maverick X3 as he drives. around the track. The circuit was dug into the brown soil of Texas in the far corner of the more than 400-acre property his family owns.
“I could do this all day,” he said with a grin as he removed his racing helmet and stepped out of the off-roader after a practice run.
It’s the old cliché about racers spending their free time driving cars, but you know Schumacher is telling the truth. This Mick Schumacher is nothing like the one you’d find at a Formula One track. There is a different kind of calm about him. When the engine stops, the peaceful silence of the surroundings returns. The vast expanse of land around us was like a sacred, untouched space, a place unstimulated by documentary filmmakers or photographers — this is the Schumacher family farm, just north of Gordonville , Texas.
“It’s a retreat, a place where I can do whatever I want,” Schumacher told ESPN. “There’s no feeling of being watched or watched. I’m just here to enjoy my time.”
Entering the farm in itself is kind of a blink-and-you-miss deal. There’s nothing obvious about that that can tell you one of the most famous sportsmen owns this land, nothing to say that it’s more remarkable than any other gated estate along the along Highway 377. This is rural Texas — go further north along the road and you hit the Red River, the river that divides Texas and Oklahoma.
The only gift of property you’re about to enter are three metal horses lining the road in front of a large black gate, with a large ‘S’ adorning both frames. Inside is a modern facility for raising and breeding horses, owned by Corinna, Mick’s mother, where his sister, Gina, a professional equestrian, also trains.
Schumacher’s father, Michael, bought the farm in 2012 to escape the fame and flattery of Europe and the rest of the world. Before the Schumachers arrived, it had been abandoned for nearly two decades and was inhabited by roaming deer and lynx. It was intended as home away from home for the Schumachers, and even in the ‘Drive to Survive’ era, Michael’s 23-year-old son is still able to enjoy an escape from reality the ranch is intended to be. .
“We’re basically in the middle of nowhere here,” said Mick Schumacher. “If I go shopping here, nobody notices. Even when I go into Dallas, nobody really recognizes me. So I’m definitely happier here.”
As we spoke at the farm in October, Mick Schumacher’s F1 future hung in the balance. Now it looks like it will stall after two years — Haas is set to replace him with more experienced Nico Hulkenberg for 2023. Schumacher’s next move remains unclear.
Schumacher’s last name and his father’s legacy – seven world championships and 91 Grand Prix championships – followed Mick wherever he went. He has never shied away from it, but from the outside it looks like a major hardship to have endured at various points in his youth career, including championships in Formula 3 and Formula 1. 2 before he joins the F1 grid in 2021.
Circumstances may have changed since we spoke, but he clearly has no intention of giving up his F1 dream anytime soon.
When asked if he could follow in his sister’s footsteps or prefer life on the farm rather than a professional athlete, if F1 had never entered the equation, he dismissed the idea. that.
“I never played with the mindset of not racing,” he said. “Formula One so much… I love it so much, so there’s no reason to think I’d do anything else.”
Like Dale Earnhardt Jr. or Bruno Senna, Schumacher’s last name was both a help and a hindrance at various points in his career. It’s hard to find F1 fans who don’t want the story of Mick Schumacher succeeding. His kart racing career began shortly after his father was fatally injured in a skiing accident in December 2013. Michael’s current condition remains a closely guarded secret — largely right. Family privacy is respected.
It created another level of the burden Schumacher had to carry. The family did their best to protect him against questions. Schumacher presented himself very well for a young man with so much burden on his shoulders. He has accepted who he is, racing against the number ’47’, which he says he is racing for “for seven”, the number perhaps most associated with his father.
“Pressure has always been a part of my life. Especially since I’ve chosen racing as a career. I think I’ve proven myself capable of racing under pressure, maybe even well. rather than no pressure.
“I’m definitely in a happy and comfortable place when I jump in the car and drive the car.”
That’s what brought us all to this sleepy part of Texas. Schumacher invited a small group of Haas engineers and mechanics to the ranch to give thanks for all that had been, by his own admission, a year-long roller coaster ride. The costly incidents Schumacher encountered at the start of the year cost Haas, F1’s smallest team, a large repair bill and severely reduced his chances of entering his third year with the US team. In the end it was more than anything against him as Gene Haas and Guenther Steiner made the final decision, even as results improved in the second part of the season.
As much as Schumacher liked the quiet, he enjoyed the rush of adrenaline racers who seemed to be constantly chasing. A small group of us made our way to a far corner of the property, through trees and undulating roads, until we came across a place that looked different from anywhere else on the farm. You immediately notice a lap with two big jumps, a string of hairpins, elbows, an incline and even a stretch that has become a bog area too wet to drive due to heavy rain. night. Schumacher simply drove around this part of the track during the day, eventually creating a rough new configuration in that corner of the track.
“I’m still trying to find that perfect lap,” Schumacher said before we stepped into Can-Am for 12 laps in the car, a statement that holds true for every driver who has ever lived.
Schumacher’s off-road interests began at the ranch. There was no lap at first, no designated place to drive — but who needs that when you have 400 acres of Texas prairie to play.
“Normally we just drive around the woods and stuff, so it’s probably more dangerous than having a track! We decided to take up some space and build a track on it. We got there. It’s been a Can- Am and now it’s become a hybrid race car.”
The story of how Schumacher owns a modified buggy is thanks to another F1 driver – his friend Esteban Oconwho not long ago encouraged his Alpine team to sign Schumacher in 2023.
One day while rummaging through the family’s possessions, Schumacher stopped to snap a picture, captioned: “If I ever make an album — this would be the cover.”
Can-Am was quick to respond, and Ocon himself grabbed Schumacher’s phone, sent a direct message to the company known for its fleet of cars and off-road motorcycles, replying, “Hey guys! Me! I wonder if you guys can help me upgrade my buggy? Many thanks!”
Can-Am does not need a second invitation. The Maverick X3 we rode is the fastest 1000cc UTV on the market — and it’s been modified to go even faster.
Schumacher knows the interview that follows our time in the car will address similar issues — his future, their pressure on him, what he would do without F1, etc., etc. But when he was at the wheel of the Can-Am, none of that seemed to really matter.
Schumacher is still mastering both the vehicle and the track, but you can tell how much he enjoys it. Throttles through a particularly fast left-hander get stronger with each rep, like he’s remembering that there’s a tiny bit left in the car each time he passes.
You can’t see or hear much in Can-Am, other than what’s happening right in front of your visor. Schumacher was completely focused on the road ahead. It’s good that he can’t hear me – whistling and squealing with delight every time he turns and jumps – but it’s easy to imagine a grin on his face as he throws us both around. the road zigzags, intertwines, spewing mud and dirt around the place as he goes. Formula One inhibitions, fear of making mistakes or trying too hard, are nowhere to be found. This is a racer that drives fast for its pure thrill.
He seemed frustrated when we had to get out of the car, even though he had the afternoon to go to the friends and colleagues he had invited for the day. Interview time. You are more comfortable here. He’s surrounded by friends and family and is clearly in a place he loves. You can’t help but wonder how long he would have been on the sleepy farm if F1 hadn’t been a part of his life.
“Whenever I’m almost there, I come out here, just doing this all day or driving around, watching the horses, petting some dogs! We have a lot of dogs here.
“I’d say it’s very different from the F1 world but also from the European world.”
Attention turns to his future and whether he is still part of that Formula One world. Although things have changed since that conversation, Schumacher clearly feels as though he deserves another year in F1.
“I felt like I had the opportunity to grow, obviously I was still a long way from where I wanted to be and what I could be,” Schumacher said.
“In Formula 1 you need three years to become a complete driver. So I’m taking my time but I’m also conscious that I want to prove myself and show people what I am. can do, as I did in Formula 3 and Formula 2.
“I don’t see why I can’t do it in Formula One.”
As it stands, Schumacher won’t get that opportunity next year, although he remains one of the few drivers with hands-on experience with F1’s new generation of cars, opening up the possibility of taking on the role. provided for the year 2023.
When asked about those mistakes, he said: “I think performance overrides that. But it’s never a great thing when it comes to crashes.
“Formula 1 is a very expensive sport. We’re trying to get the most out of it and sometimes you have to go to the limit. The cars this year are very different from last year so some ways to proceed. my approach didn’t work’ didn’t work. When we changed it in Canada, things changed a lot for the better.”
Clearly, Formula 1 is a sport that Schumacher especially loves. Whether he will continue it beyond 2023, in any capacity, remains to be seen.
