Ross Brawn is excited by the emergence of Mick Schumacher as a real talent in Formula 3 this year, and while the racing world has taken note of the youngster, who is looking to follow in his legendary father's footsteps, the Formula 1 motorsport chief is calling for patience.
While Michael Schumacher is reportedly wheelchair-bound and out of the public eye, since his freak skiing accident in December 2013, while his son Mick made his way through the junior motorsport ranks with modest success.
But this summer he has been on a streak of great performances that have catapulted him to the top of the European Formula 3 Championship standings, with three points scoring rounds remaining he is favourite for the title.
Of course, his performances have piqued the interest of the F1 world from fans through to teams, with Ferrari offering a red carpet for the youngster should he come calling at Maranello while Red Bull's Helmut Marko's denial of interest speaks louder than words!
Red Bull did it with Max Verstappen, scooped him from under the noses of everyone out of Formula 3 and put him with Toro Rosso before the subsequent Red Bull promotion. Nothing stops them doing a similar thing with young Schumacher provided Marko believes in the German youngster as he did with the Dutchman.
Meanwhile, the sport's promoters, which includes Brawn, know that Schumi III will be good for the sport provided the youngster has the right stuff, and by all accounts, he might well do.
Brawn, who worked closely with Schumacher senior throughout the German's illustrious career, told Tass news agency, "I'm excited that he's doing so well. There's a lot of good memories, but he has to take a few more steps before he can go to Formula 1, I think.
Although the likes of Verstappen, the benchmark young driver of this generation, made the jump from Formula 3 to Formula 1, Brawn advises against such a move for the 19-year-old, "Mick is a very mature young man, and I think he knows he still needs to develop to be ready for being a F1 driver."
"If Mick wants to prepare properly for Formula 1, Formula 2 is the next logical step for him. Today we have a much closer collaboration between Formula 2 and F1, and he could learn many of the tracks," explained Brawn.
Michael Schumacher - Schumi the First - burst on to the F1 scene in 1991 and became the sport's most successful driver of all time.
His brother Ralf - Schumi the Second - also progressed into Formula 1 but with less success than his older brother, but nevertheless chalked up six victories and 27 podiums from his 180 grand prix starts.
Time will tell if Mick - Schumi the Third - can emulate his uncle, let alone his father. If he does either Formula 1 will be the richer for it.
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