Mick Schumacher is not convinced that he is driving at his best at the moment despite having a solid performance leap in the FIA European Formula 3 Championship.
The German looked good in the pre-season testing for his second year in European F3, but languished in the lower half of the Top 10 until the round at Spa-Francorchamps, where he scored his first-ever win in the category with Prema Powerteam.
Since then, the German has took five wins and a podium along with three pole positions to leap into second (261) – only three points behind leader Red Bull junior and Motopark’s Dan Ticktum (264) with two rounds and six races remaining.
The performance was always there for Schumacher from the start of the season, however, luck turned to his side from mid-season for better results. At the same time, his rivals faltered allowing him to make a remarkable recovery.
He is still not convinced though with his driving when asked by FormulaRapida.net as he reckons there is a lot more to learn. “[The] pre-season went very well for me, and indeed we worked a lot over the winter to further improve,” he said.
“With regards to your question if I am driving the best I can – I am convinced I can still learn a lot and learning should always be the aim of a good racing driver, so: no [I am not driving my best yet].”
Having watched his races from close quarters in the Indian international MRF Challenge series, it can be seen that he has brought balanced aggression to his game along with improvement in putting a lap together in qualifying.
Meanwhile, the German agreed that Spa-Francorchamps was the turning point in the season but when asked what happened before that, Schumacher had no proper explanation as to why they couldn’t put together the race weekends.
“It is obvious that Spa was the turning point in the season so far, with the pole position and the win at a very special track,” he said. “We knew the pace was there from the very beginning but up until then we could not bring it into good results.
“In the end, I also do not have a proper explanation [for the lack of results early on], but I am just happy about it [the upturn].” The aim will be to win the title and for once finish on the top spot rather than second or third, but it isn’t playing up on his mind.
He missed both the Italian F4 and ADAC F4 titles in 2016 finishing second, while he was third in the 2016/17 MRF Challenge. “I am going step by step, I am only thinking about the coming race weekend [in Austria] and achieving my best performance there.
“To me, the most important thing is to become a complete driver,” he said. When asked about his future step, whether he will race in Macau GP and move to FIA Formula 2 Championship in 2019, Schumacher remained tight-lipped about it, for now.