Mick Schumacher Q&A: Azerbaijan Grand Prix

What are your takeaways from the Monaco Grand Prix weekend in terms of your own overall performance and in particular your ability to bounce back from the disappointment of missing qualifying on Saturday to demonstrate a solid race pace on Sunday despite some early issues with your VF-21.

“Monaco was tough, difficult – we obviously had some incidents on track which always brings you back a bit in terms of confidence. To be fair, I always felt comfortable in the car, that’s why also I think you could see in FP3 the pace was there. It was very unfortunate that we missed qualifying as I felt like we had solid pace to be with the guys ahead and fight with them in qualifying. Obviously, we know that Monaco is quite qualifying dependent, so hopefully I’ll be able to participate in that next year and show my performance there. I really like the track and I like driving on the streets.”

 

Drivers talk about the intensity of racing in Monaco and the level of concentration required lap after lap. People tend to focus on the physicality of being a race car driver, but do you focus on any mental preparation ahead of races and how does that translate behind the wheel?

“Definitely Monaco is one of the most intense races that we have on the calendar. You don’t have time to rest, it’s corner after corner, and 78 laps of full speed, 100 percent every lap. If you lose focus it can end really badly. There’s nothing really that I do in terms of mental preparation ahead of the race, but definitely I try to calm myself down in the warm-ups, I bring my concentration towards me before jumping in the car. Once I’m in the car I feel I’m fully concentrating. Obviously, a big part of my concentration level being high and maintaining it, is working with the engineers and mechanics. We’re all working as a clock, every little bit works together, and I feel that also affects me when I’m driving – in a positive way obviously. We’re able to work together so closely, and they have to have a high focus too, they have to be ready for things like changing tires and reacting to situations. We had the issue in the race in Monaco, so we had to be able to react to it straight away, and I feel like we managed it pretty well. So, there are loads of things that contribute to mental preparation, but there’s nothing that we focus on every race doing the same thing – it’s always adjusting and analyzing. Each individual race needs a different preparation for the mental side.”

 

We head to another street circuit now, but one that couldn’t be more different from Monaco, with Baku City Circuit one of the longest layouts on the 2021 calendar topping out at 6.003-kilometers (3.730-miles). Talk us through the nature of the circuit and the engineering comprise of maximizing the speed on the straights with aerodynamic grip to navigate the Old Town sector of the track.  

“It’s definitely completely different to Monaco. It’s a lot wider, with more concrete walls – where Monaco it’s more guard rails, Baku is a lot more walls. It’s a kind of a lowish to medium downforce race track, you have to keep the grip for the 90-degree corners in the tight section through the Old Town, then you have the long straights which creates a lot of overtaking opportunities hopefully. I’m definitely looking forward to it, it’s a great track, and I was there in 2019. It’s a fun track. The long run down to turn one, if you have a good start, you can benefit from it really well, but if you have a bad start it will pay you loads. It’s also important to have a good qualifying in order to be in the mix and to fight with the guys around us.”

 

While this will be your maiden Azerbaijan Grand Prix start you have race experience of the Baku City Circuit from the 2019 Formula 2 season – including a top five finish in the Sprint race. Does the track suit your driving style and how you like the car to be balanced, and what else did you learn from your previous visit that you can carry into your return to Baku in Formula 1?

“Well obviously it’s going to be my first start in a Formula 1 car in Baku, for sure it’s going to be different as it’ll be a lot faster. It was a track in my early Formula 2 career I felt I got along with pretty well. We were on the verge of making it to the podium, or P4 at least, in the Sprint race. Unfortunately, in the Feature race I had a mistake which led to a DNF, but nonetheless we caught it back in the Sprint race coming from the back of the field into the top five. It’s a race where anything can happen, we’ve seen that in previous years. It’s a track where opportunities open, and if you’re in the right place, you can benefit hugely from it – that’s what we’re aiming for. We should be open minded going into the race and take the opportunities that are given to us.”