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| Orientation to a test at IMS Road Course begins in earnest within the Pit Box of Rahal Letterman Lanigan with Mick Schumacher. Image Credit: Joe Skibinski via NICS (2025) |
Mick Schumacher’s INDYCAR Test Nets A Strenuous Track Day At Indianapolis
By Edmund Jenks ... notes from The EDJE
Mick Schumacher climbed into the No. 75 Honda for Rahal Letterman Lanigan
Racing as the sun hung low over the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, casting long
shadows across the reconfigured IMS road course. This was no sentimental
pilgrimage, no passion play steeped in the legacy of his father, Michael
Schumacher, who conquered this hallowed ground five times in Formula 1. No,
this was a grueling, methodical track day - a full-throttle immersion into the
raw, unfiltered demands of NTT INDYCAR Dallara machinery.
For Mick, a driver
with 43 Formula 1 starts and a current World Endurance Championship campaign,
this test was a calculated exercise in data collection, not an emotional
homecoming.
NTT INDYCAR SERIES News Conference
Monday, October 13, 2025 - Indianapolis,
Indiana, USA
Mick Schumacher - FULL Press Conference Above
Transcript With Edmund Jenks (click to launch video - 38.36 start time):
The EDJE: My interest is you're a professional driver. You don't just go out and just
do a track day because it's fun. You're seriously considering INDYCAR. Is
there anything about the variants of the types of racing that we have,
whether it's -- I know you haven't done ovals, but we have short ovals,
large ovals, you know, dedicated road courses, as well as street courses.
Are there any races out there that interest you, any tracks that interest
you, given that you are looking into this NTT INDYCAR SERIES approach?
MICK SCHUMACHER: There are great tracks out there. I think one of the big
points, it is one of those places where you will find more old-school
racetracks than new ones, and I think everybody kind of understands what I
mean with that. I think that aspect is pretty fun.
Also, street circuits are usually very challenging, and they demand a lot from
a racing driver. Yeah, I think there's a good mix from racetracks out there at
the INDYCAR SERIES.
I don't want to talk too much about ovals. That's why I didn't kind of go
there. Yeah, as I said earlier in this meeting, I am considering at some point
maybe doing an oval just to see what it's about, whether that's going to be a
short, mid, or long oval, I don't know. I didn't know there were those three
different lengths to it.
But, yeah, I think, again, the series is a great series. It's a spec series,
but still, there is some development you can do from team to team. So, yeah,
racing seems fun. We'll see what opportunities it might have for me.
The EDJE: Finally, outside of the Indy 500, are there any specific races that you may
have watched on television, and you go, Boy, I could myself in a car on that
track? Are there any tracks that call to you?
MICK SCHUMACHER: I don't know how to really answer that, because I did watch a
couple of tracks, but it's hard to really kind of feel that way if you haven't
driven it.
I definitely am interested in seeing some other tracks out there. Today was
good to be here to see this track. It was definitely a fun one. Racing, I'm
sure, is a great pleasure here.
But, yeah, there's no real knowledge of mine that would say, okay, that one
track is one that I would like to race on, for now.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
ENDS
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| Yard Of Bricks crossed as Mick Schumacher plys the same pavements seven-time Formula One World Champion, and father, Michael Schumacher won the United States Grand Prix five times on between 2000-07.Image Credit: Chris Jones via NICS (2025) |
Schumacher’s day was a marathon of precision and adaptation. The Rahal Letterman Lanigan crew had a meticulously crafted run plan, and Mick executed it with the focus of a seasoned professional. Lap after lap, he wrestled with the nuances of the INDYCAR beast - its heavier steering, its aggressive tire behavior, its Aeroscreen-induced heat. “It feels very much like an F2 car,” he noted, drawing parallels to his championship-winning days, though the INDYCAR’s raw edge demanded a bolder approach. The Firestone tires, reminiscent of his F3 Hankook days, allowed him to push hard without the delicate conservation required in other series. This was no leisurely drive; it was a relentless pursuit of feedback and performance.
The preparation for this test was as intense as the day itself. Schumacher
spent days embedded with the RLL team, poring over details in the workshop and
logging hours in the Honda simulator. This wasn’t about soaking in the
mystique of Indianapolis but about mastering the car’s quirks before he even
turned a wheel. The simulator offered a taste of the INDYCAR’s handling,
stripping away surprises and letting Mick focus on extracting data. “It was
really important to see how a race weekend would run out,” he said,
emphasizing the structured approach that defined the day. Every moment was
about building a foundation, not chasing glory.
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InstaGram image posted by Mick Schumacher showing the unique
Aeroscreen entry into the cockpit of a Dallara NTT INDYCAR platform. Image Credit: Mick Schumacher (2025) |
The track itself was unforgiving, an old-school layout that punished mistakes with a trip into the grass. Schumacher relished the challenge, finding the circuit’s demands a fitting test for his skills. Comparisons to his Formula 1 experience were inevitable, but he dismissed nostalgia in favor of pragmatism. “I was focused on driving, doing my plan,” he said, shrugging off questions about his father’s legacy. The INDYCAR’s rough-and-tumble nature - less clinical than F1, with its spec-series ethos - required a different mindset. Mick adapted, noting the car’s looser rear end and the tactile connection provided by its heavier steering. This was a workout, not a reverie.
Challenges abounded, from decoding the team’s lingo - “stickers” for new tires
left him briefly puzzled - to adjusting to the Aeroscreen’s stifling airflow.
Yet Schumacher took it in stride, his focus unwavering. The physicality of the
car, often hyped as a beast by other drivers, proved less daunting than
expected. “I didn’t think it was that heavy,” he admitted, finding the
steering’s feedback a source of connection rather than strain. The test wasn’t
about heroics; it was about understanding the machine and its limits, a task
Mick attacked with clinical efficiency.
For all the sweat and focus, the day wasn’t without its sparks of enjoyment.
Schumacher’s love for open-wheel racing shone through, a nod to his father’s
adage about Schumachers being fastest when they can see their wheels. The
INDYCAR’s single-seater DNA appealed to him, its 17-race calendar a
tantalizing prospect for a driver who thrives on competition. Yet he remained
guarded about his future, weighing INDYCAR against other options for 2026.
“It’s about me trying to figure out what I want to do,” he said, his
decision-making process as deliberate as his laps. An oval test looms as a
potential next step, but for now, Mick is content to analyze and reflect.
In the end, this was no romantic ode to racing’s past but a hard-fought day of
work. Schumacher’s test was a masterclass in discipline, a driver fully
immersed in the task at hand. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with its
storied history, served as a backdrop, not a shrine. For Mick, the allure of
INDYCAR lies in its driver-centric ethos, where talent behind the wheel still
reigns supreme. As he packed up after a long debrief, the data gathered and
lessons learned were the true trophies of the day - a strenuous track day,
executed with purpose.
... notes from
The EDJE
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