Schumacher: I’m sure it will be a great experience

The German, who makes his Formula 2 debut in Bahrain this weekend with the Prema team, will test Ferrari’s F90 car at the Sakhir circuit on April 2 after the grand prix there.

The 19-year-old, who won the European F3 title last year and is a member of Ferrari’s young driver academy, will also test Alfa Romeo’s new car on Wednesday.

“I am really looking forward to what I’m sure will be a great experience,” he said.

“But for the moment, I am consciously putting all thoughts of the test to one side, because I am also very much looking forward to competing in my first F2 race and would like to focus 100 percent on the weekend to come.”

Britain’s Callum Ilott, who is also in Formula Two this season and is another Ferrari academy member, will make his F1 test debut with Ferrari-powered Alfa in Barcelona in May after the Spanish Grand Prix.

Schumacher’s father, who has not been seen in public since suffering severe head injuries in a skiing accident in 2013, won five of his record seven Formula 1 titles with the Italian team between 2000-04 and holds the record of 91 wins.

Ferrari principal Mattia Binotto said the team’s current driver Charles Leclerc was proof of the worth of the academy as a high-level training programme for talented youngsters.

“Mick, who joined the FDA in January, and Callum, who has been with us since 2017, are definitely drivers on their way up,” he said.

“I believe that driving the SF90 in an official setting such as the tests in Bahrain and Barcelona can be very useful at this stage in their career.”

Mick Schumacher will drive the Ferrari SF90 for the first time on the first day of the test, Tuesday 2 April, following the Bahrain Grand Prix.

The German, who is racing in Formula 2 this year with the Prema team and is a Ferrari Driver Academy member, will drive on both days, as after first driving the Ferrari he will jump into the cockpit of the Alfa Romeo Racing car for the Wednesday.

On the second day of testing at the Sakhir circuit, it will be the turn of Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow driver Sebastian Vettel to continue with testing work. With the race having taken place just a couple of days earlier, this will provide the engineers with a good reference point for their data.

It won’t be long until another FDA driver is seen at the wheel of a Formula 1 car. Callum Ilott, currently racing in Formula 2 with the Sauber Junior Team by Charouz Racing, will be driving the Alfa Romeo Racing car at the forthcoming Barcelona test, on 14 and 15 May.

Mattia Binotto, Team Principal: “We are firm believers in the value of the Ferrari Driver Academy, as a high-level training programme for talented youngsters and the decision to give Charles Leclerc a race seat with our team is proof of that."

"We are therefore very pleased to be able to give Mick and Callum the opportunity to experience driving a Formula 1 car. Mick, who joined the FDA in January, and Callum, who has been with us since 2017, are definitely drivers on their way up and I believe that driving the SF90 in an official setting such as the tests in Bahrain and Barcelona can be very useful at this stage in their career."

Mick Schumacher, FDA driver: “I am obviously more than excited and would like to thank Ferrari for giving me this opportunity. I am really looking forward to what I’m sure will be a great experience. But for the moment, I am consciously putting all thoughts of the test to one side, because I am also very much looking forward to competing in my first F2 race and would like to focus a hundred percent on the weekend to come”.