Mick Schumacher suggests he may need to resort to his ‘plan B’ for 2024, as his pathways to re-enter the Formula 1 line-up seem limited.

“Hope dies last,” the 24-year-old Mercedes’ reserve driver, previously shown the door by Haas after two seasons, informed the SID news agency.

Toto Wolff, Schumacher’s current boss, faults Haas for the dilemma faced by the young German.

“When you don’t feel confident with a car for a long period, the more pressure you put on yourself, the worse your performance is, and I think this is what happened to him at Haas,” the Mercedes principal and co-owner told DAZN.

“He is a driver who has proven to be fast. He won F3 and F2, he showed that he has great potential, but he was never able to demonstrate his qualities in F1.”

While keeping his opinions on Haas under wraps since his exit the previous year, Schumacher now hints to potential new teams, “You haven’t seen the real Mick yet.”

His determination for a 2024 grid return remains undeterred. However, recent reports from Alfa Romeo suggest Guanyu Zhou is lined up for another year.

Keeping his optimism intact, Schumacher emphasizes: “Hope dies last. As long as all the seats are not taken, it is not over.”

“We have seen in the last two or three years that things can still change, even if contracts are in place. So it would be wrong to give up hope.”

While he accepts the potential need for a ‘plan B’, possibly another year at Mercedes, he commented, “Of course I’ve thought about it and I am setting it up at the same time,” steering clear of more explicit details.

Serving as Mercedes’ reserve has been “beneficial in many ways – probably even more than I expected.”

“The simulator work in particular was very helpful. I was able to see how a top team works,” Schumacher observed.

Yet, standing by while other racers compete is a hard pill to swallow. “It hurts, of course.”

“I would be lying if I said I liked it,” the 24-year-old son of F1 legend Michael Schumacher admitted. “I’m a racing driver. All I want to do is win.

“But I have to come to terms with reality, keep working on myself, keep trying to have conversations and showing who I am.”

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