Ahead of the inaugural IndyCar Arlington GP, Mick Schumacher spoke to the media, including Pit Debrief, and the German driver cut an assured and measured figure as he looked ahead to a weekend that carries a personal edge for him as well.
Schumacher lives in Texas, and Arlington is as close to a home race as the IndyCar calendar has offered him so far. “It was the first time that I drove back to my place after Thursday,” he said. “It was pretty interesting, a weird feeling at first. But it’s good, I have a lot of friends coming over, family, so it’ll be nice.”
First impressions of the circuit
Like every driver on the grid, Schumacher arrives at the IndyCar Arlington GP, without any competitive data on the new street circuit. His track walk gave him enough to form a clear picture of what lies ahead. “It looks pretty bumpy,” he said. “They tried to do as much as they could to grind it down and make sure it’s flat. But I’m sure it’s not super easy. Obviously, Texas winters are quite tough at times and the summers are pretty hot. We’ll see what we find today.”
Despite the unknowns, his overall assessment of the circuit was encouraging. “It looks fun, it looks quick. That back straight is pretty narrow but fast and long. I’m sure we’ll see a lot of overtaking across the weekend and especially in the race. It’ll be a fun one.”
When asked whether the track reminded him of anywhere he had raced before, Schumacher reached back into his career for the reference point. “Probably, I would say, Macau comes close. Just because of the long straights and the way it goes down. So yeah, I would say Macau.”
He also identified the variety of surfaces as a challenge the entire field will need to manage carefully. “What’s the first time is that we have so many different tarmacs and different conditions on the circuit from corner to corner. Thinking about Turn 2, for example, where it pretty quickly changes from the black tarmac to the concrete.”
“That will be interesting to see what grip it is. In Sebring, we found quite a lot of different patches of grip. I presume it will be similar here. I think we’re all going to go in there and just try to be open-minded.”
A level playing field
One theme Schumacher returned to was the opportunity that a brand-new circuit presents for a driver still establishing himself in IndyCar. Nobody has lapped Arlington in a racing car before, and while he was measured about the advantage that creates, he acknowledged the dynamic it produces. “I think everybody knows the car so well, so they obviously still have an advantage,” he stated. “But nonetheless, I’m excited to get going. We saw in St. Pete and also in Phoenix, the advantage, once you get comfortable, isn’t really there throughout the weekend. It’s just about performing and maximising what you have as a package.”
Preparation has been limited by necessity. When asked about how he had approached getting ready for an unknown circuit, he was straightforward. “We have the opportunity to do a bit in the simulator, so that helps. But we don’t have the bumps, we don’t have the laser scan from the track, so it will be an adventure for sure.”
Phoenix and the qualifying target
Schumacher’s Phoenix weekend was not without its difficulties. A slow pit stop cost him time and track position during the race, and he ultimately finished outside the points. The pace, however, was there at times, and he heads to Arlington with a specific ambition for qualifying. Answering Pit Debrief on the subject, he set out his goal plainly. “The aim is to reach FAST 6 first. Again, a lot of guys out there have a lot of talent and a lot of speed, so if we’re able to get there, that would be great. I would be excited to do the single lap of it.”
The transition from Formula 1 to IndyCar has brought its own set of adjustments, and Schumacher has been candid throughout about the learning curve involved. On the differences between the two paddocks, he offered a characteristically dry observation. “I think if you’re in a hurry to go from point A to point B, you’re better off in the F1 paddock. Because it is very busy and crowded and it’s pretty impressive how many people walk around.”
