Sebastian Vettel has confirmed his return to Race of Champions in Sydney alongside Mick Schumacher to represent Team Germany.
Two of the biggest names in world motorsports, Sebastian Vettel and his younger German compatriot Mick Schumacher, have been confirmed for the 2025 Race Of Champions at Accor Stadium in Sydney, March 7-8. The pair will come together to create a German “super team” in the ROC Nations Cup component of the event on Friday and then go head-to-head in what is set to be a star-studded field for outright “Champion of Champions” honors on Saturday evening.
The announcement of the high-profile German pair comes just hours before tickets officially go on sale for the unique event which has been hosted by some of the world’s leading stadiums. Seven-time Supercars champion Jamie Whincup was confirmed as part of the field when the event was launched last Wednesday and several big names are expected to follow in coming weeks.
The event comes two weeks after the 2025 Supercars opener at Sydney Motorsport Park (Feb 21-23) and one week before the opening round of the F1 World Championship in Melbourne (March 13-16). Vettel won the individual ROC at London’s Olympic Stadium in 2015 and teamed with Michael Schumacher to win the Nations Cup for Germany no less than six times.
Vettel then teamed with Mick Schumacher to finish second in the ROC Nations Cup in Mexico in 2019, while the younger of the pair finished second in ROC Sweden in 2023. This will be a rare chance for Australian fans to see Vettel, a four-time F1 world champion, compete on “local” soil. Vettel, 37, became the youngest F1 world champion in 2010 and then went on to win the next three world titles for Red Bull.
During his F1 career he won 53 races, took 57 pole positions and made 122 podium appearances. He is no stranger to local fans having won the Australian F1 Grand Prix no less than three times in 2011 for Red Bull and 2017 and 2018 for Ferrari. He also finished on the podium four times with a second in 2012 and third-placed results in 2013-15-16. Schumacher, 25, is the son of seven-time F1 World Champion Michael Schumacher, and has forged his own successful career after learning his craft in karting.
He was European F3 champion in 2018 and then won the World F2 Championship two seasons later. He graduated to a full-time F1 drive in 2021 and 2022 and is currently 3rd Driver for the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 team while competing for Alpine in the World Endurance Championship in a Hypercar, where he recently finished third in the Fuji six-hour in Japan.
ROC is renowned for gathering some of the best drivers in the world, including superstars from Formula 1, Le Mans, IndyCar, Nascar, Supercars, World Rally and Rallycross. Past participants have included Vettel, Schumacher, Sébastien Loeb, David Coulthard, Marcus Grönholm and Jenson Button. Other international stars have included Nascar champions Jimmie Johnson, Kurt and Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon, Indy 500 winners Ryan Hunter-Reay, Juan-Pablo Montoya, Helio Castroneves and Josef Newgarden, Formula E Champion Lucas Di Grassi and Extreme sports star Travis Pastrana.
The Race Of Champions will run over two nights with a purpose built 950m track taking centre stage at Accor Stadium, Sydney’s Olympic Stadium. The ROC Nations Cup takes place on Friday the 7th, with drivers paired in teams based on nationality to bid for the title of ‘World’s Fastest Nation’. The Saturday night will see the individual Race Of Champions, when all teamwork goes out of the window and it will be a battle for individual glory and the ‘Champion of Champions’ title.
What Sebastian Vettel said: “I’m delighted to be coming back to the Race Of Champions and teaming up with Mick again. It will be exciting to race in the former Olympic Stadium in Sydney that looks like it will be a great venue for the Race Of Champions. Sydney is one of the most beautiful cities in the world and I think Fredrik (Johnsson) and his team have selected an incredible venue for the next chapter of ROC.
“I am also supportive of ROC’s efforts taking steps towards becoming a sustainable motorsport event, which started at ROC Sweden. All the drivers who have the honour to participate in ROC fall in love with the event, because it reminds us about why we first started racing; pure competition and of course with the identical cars there are no excuses.
“I will do everything I can to help Germany win another ROC Nations Cup Title with Mick on the Friday evening, but I will not be doing him any favours when we are going for the outright win on the Saturday night, especially as he beat me in the Semifinals of the Individual ROC in Sweden in 2023! At ROC the racing is always intense on the track and everyone wants to win, but it’s also about putting on a great show for the fans.”
Mick Schumacher said: “Australia is one of my favourite places and representing Germany together with Sebastian at ROC Sydney will for sure be big fun. After finishing 2nd in the individual ROC in Sweden in 2023 and in the ROC Nations Cup in ROC Mexico with Seb, the goal this time has to be the overall winners trophy both in the ROC Nations Cup on Friday night and in the individual Race Of Champions on Saturday.
“I very much look forward to meeting all the other drivers and spending time with them during the Race Of Champions weekend in Sydney. I am sure the drivers will have a crazy good time together and put on a super show for the Australian fans.”
Fredrik Johnsson, Race Of Champions President and Co-Founder said: “It is great news on the day we officially go on sale that Sebastian Vettel and Mick Schumacher have both confirmed that they will compete in the first ever Race Of Champions in Australia, the 7 & 8 March at Accor Stadium in Sydney. We have a commitment to create the best event we possibly can for the Australian fans and to be able to announce Sebastian and Mick on the back of seven-time Supercars champion Jamie Whincup is fantastic.
“We are having discussions with many more international stars from a wide-range of disciplines and look forward to regularly adding to our grid and giving Australian fans more and more to look forward to. The interest we have received after announcing that ROC will come to Australia for the first time was already huge, I’m sure the confirmation of Sebastian and Mick competing will take it to an even higher level.”
Here’s more on Race of Champions Sydney
[Note: The story is as per press release]