Having been a candidate earlier in the season to potentially head to Alpine, alongside being named as one of the contenders to replace Logan Sargeant at Williams, Schumacher’s options to get back into Formula 1 are looking all but over, with only VCARB having an uncontracted cockpit remaining for 2025.
Mick Schumacher: ‘This is just a chapter, not the whole story’
Reports have recently linked Valtteri Bottas with a potential return to Mercedes in a reserve role, the role which Schumacher has occupied for the past two seasons following his departure from Haas.
He has kept up his competitive driving through the World Endurance Championship with Alpine this season, but the German wrote on social media on Sunday that the current part of his career is “not the whole story”, and is looking to “rise above it.”
“Life doesn’t always go as planned, and setbacks can be tough to face,” Schumacher wrote on his Instagram story.
“But every challenge is a chance to learn, grow and come back even stronger. This is just a chapter, not the whole story.
“The journey continues, and I’m determined to rise above it. Thank you all for your support, it means the world.”
A look at the Formula 1 grid moving forward
👉 F1 2025 driver line-up: Who is already confirmed for the 2025 grid?
👉 F1 2026 driver line-up: Lewis Hamilton and other drivers already confirmed for 2026
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said he would have been “cheering for” Schumacher to have been given an opportunity with Williams earlier this year, but the team opted to promote from within and placed Franco Colapinto in the cockpit after the summer break to replace Sargeant.
More recently, the 25-year-old had been under consideration with Sauber, too, before the team chose to sign Formula 2 championship leader Gabriel Bortoleto for the 2025 season.
Sauber chief technical and chief operating officer Mattia Binotto confirmed the German had been one of the drivers looked at as a potential partner to Nico Hulkenberg next year.
“We had several talks, he was certainly a strong candidate,” Binotto said to media including PlanetF1.com.
“I know him very well from the past and I know his strengths and maybe his weaknesses as well, but certainly I think he would have been a good choice. I think there have been many candidates and Mick would have been certainly a good choice as well.
“Now sometimes you need to come to a decision. I think there is no reason why or blames for me, the reason simply goes we decided for Gabriel and that’s it.”
