Guenther Steiner gives a friendly heads-up to Mick Schumacher as the former Haas driver faces an important choice in his career.
Guenther Steiner has shared some friendly advice for his former Haas driver, Mick Schumacher, as Mick thinks about whether to stay in IndyCar next year. Mick, who raced for Haas in F1 from 2021 to 2022, moved to the US this season to join Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.
Some ex-Formula 1 drivers who switch to IndyCar usually take it easy in their first year, skipping oval races. But Mick chose a different path and has raced in every event, including the famous Indianapolis 500. His best finish so far was 16th at the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 on an oval track in Illinois. In Detroit, he was even running third and looking set for his first IndyCar podium before he outbraked himself and hit the barrier with 28 laps to go.
When Mick’s move to IndyCar was announced, it was clear he signed up for the full 2026 season, but nothing has been said about 2027 yet. So, we don’t know if he’ll stay with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing for a second season.
Steiner, who has experience in the US as the director of NASCAR’s Team Red Bull from 2006 to 2008, thinks Mick needs a full year to learn the ropes in IndyCar. He explained that IndyCar is very different from F1 and people often assume that if you’ve raced in F1, you can easily switch to other series – but that’s not true. Each series is special and requires its own skills.
Steiner told SPORTbible, “Moving to a different race series is always tough. We all think F1 drivers can be fast anywhere, but it doesn’t work like that. For Mick, he needs time to learn, and next year will show how good he can be. If he has a tough season, it might be hard for him to stay in such a big series. My advice to Mick is to focus on learning the tracks and the cars, which are very challenging physically.”
He also talked about Colton Herta, who went the other way – moving from IndyCar to Formula 2 this year. Colton is Cadillac’s reserve driver for F1 but can’t race in F1 quite yet because he doesn’t have an FIA Super Licence. To get it, he has to finish in the top eight in Formula 2, which is tougher than IndyCar’s top six requirement.
So far, Colton has had a rough season and is 15th in the F2 championship, with his best result being fifth. Before the British Grand Prix, he said he wasn’t happy with how things were going and mentioned he’s still adjusting to the Pirelli tires used in F2, which differ from IndyCar’s Firestone tires.
Steiner said, “Colton is one of the most talented young American drivers. He’s not doing as well as expected in F2, but he needs time to get used to it. Because it’s F2, not F1, he needs to improve in the second half of the season. A second year in F2 might help, but we need to see him getting better to know if he can move up to F1. It would be great to see a strong American driver in Formula 1.”
Overall, Steiner’s message is clear: both drivers need time to adapt and learn as they take on these big challenges, and with patience, they could do really well.