'Fingers crossed' for Schumacher's debut

(GMM) Ross Brawn says he will be keeping his “fingers crossed” for Mick Schumacher’s highly anticipated Formula 1 debut next year.

Ferrari has now confirmed that Michael Schumacher’s 21-year-old son will be “on track with another team” for the forthcoming young driver test in Abu Dhabi.

It is an open secret that the team in question is Haas, who are believed to have already signed up the young German for his F1 debut in 2021.

F1’s sporting boss Brawn, who worked closely with Mick’s father at both Ferrari and Mercedes, was told by Italy’s La Gazzetta dello Sport that Haas will announce the 2021 deal “in a few days”.

“It has been fascinating to watch him grow,” Brawn responded. “In the last two seasons he has been very promising.

“We don’t know how he will go in Formula 1 but he is incredibly mature and well balanced. I am optimistic – he has all the qualities and the skills,” Brawn added.

“Obviously he has a lot of pressure on him, there is no doubt about that, but so far he has managed it well. Nico Rosberg managed it, of course. Having a world champion as a father is a heavy legacy, but I will keep my fingers crossed for him.

“Nobody in Formula 1 would put someone in a car without the necessary talent, but of course a name like that opens some doors,” said Brawn.

Meanwhile, in an RTL documentary that aired this week in Germany, Mick was asked about the Schumacher family’s privacy which means almost nothing is publicly known about his father’s health condition.

“Privacy is important to us,” he said. “Our privacy for us as a family is of the utmost importance and I am very grateful that we have this separation from the media and that they accept it.”