There have again been plenty of twists, turns, tribulations and controversies in the 2022 Formula 1 campaign, and Red Bull driver Max Verstappen continues to lead the headlines given his recent refusal to follow team orders during the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
But it has not just been another tricky year for the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA in the track, there have been a plethora of rule and regulation debates as well, with more changes expected given the complaints that have gone in.
We are at the time of year though where race teams begin making firmer plans for the coming 2023 campaign and with Audi joining up that will add a new facet to the current pecking order if they hit the ground running as fast as most expect them to, but with changes afoot, it means some drivers are caught between a rock and a hard place as they move forward.
One such driver is Mick Schumacher who has lost his seat given veteran driver Nico Hulkenberg has now officially joined up with Haas. With the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix only hours away, for those like a flutter there is still time to place a stake on the grand prix if you wish.
Schumacher has had another poor season and as we head towards December, he has only picked up 12 points so far in the 2022 campaign, and allied to his first year with the US-based team, they have clearly decided that there has not been enough progress from the 23-year-old for them to sign him up again.
35-year-old Hulkenberg, however, returns to the grid for a full season for the first time since 2019 where he was dropped by Renault. Pointless in 2022, he has only had a handful of substitute appearances for Racing Point/Aston Martin since then, but he definitely brings experience to Haas’s ranks moving forward.
Schumacher’s departure means a F1 return for Hulkenberg
“I’m very happy to move into a full-time race seat with Haas F1 team in 2023,” declared the Hulk. “I feel like I never really left Formula 1. I’m excited to have the opportunity to do what I love the most again and want to thank Gene Haas and Gunther Steiner for their trust. We have work ahead of us to be able to compete with all the other teams in the midfield, and I cannot wait to join that battle again.”
The son of seven time champion and legend Michael Schumacher now turns his hopes to seeing a failure from American Logan Sargeant for a seat in F1 next year. Williams have already said the seat is Sargeant’s to lose, and all their reserve driver for 2022 needs to do is qualify and secure sufficient points in this weekends Formula 2 finale in Abu Dhabi – he needs to finish eighth in the championship and he sits in third place currently.
With only 12 points to his name, his year has been put further into focus by team mate Kevin Magnussen notching up a comparable 25 points and despite a series of heavy crashes denting his hopes, Magnussen has also out qualified him 14 times to five where a fairer comparison cane be made.
Schumacher’s chances do not just rest on Sargeant though, Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff has already said there could be a reserve seat for him with them, because they and the Schumacher family ‘belonged together’, but Australian Daniel Ricciardo is also an option for them – although they are not his only choice as it is believed he is in talks with former team Red Bull about a similar role.