How ex-F1 driver Mick Schumacher’s maiden IndyCar podium dream was wrecked
Mick Schumacher's hopes of a first IndyCar podium were shattered during a troubled race in Detroit.
Ex-Formula 1 driver Mick Schumacher saw his hopes of claiming a first IndyCar podium derailed by an unfortunate combination of team errors, a radio failure, and a crash.
Schumacher, the son of seven-time F1 world champion Michael, worked his way up to a net second place at Detroit after a strategy gamble from his team, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, appeared to have paid off.
Choosing to bring Schumacher in early for his final pit stop seemed to work wonders when the German gained a handful of positions as his rivals stopped during one of six caution periods during the race.
Schumacher was running third on the road but was set to gain second place from Alexander Rossi, who still had a penalty to serve.
However, Schumacher blew his hopes of claiming a maiden podium in IndyCar when he collided with David Malukas.
After the pair made contact exiting Turn 4, Schumacher outbraked himself and ran deep at Turn 5, taking Malukas with him.
The incident dropped Schumacher down the order but further trouble would hit when he was called into the pits by race control because a malfunction caused the radio on his car to stop working.
Schumacher spent eight laps in the pits while his car was fixed before he could rejoin the action and eventually cross the line in 21st place, nine laps down on the winner Alex Palou.
As it turned out, Schumacher would not have been allowed to keep his position at the time of the collision because the pit lane was already closed when he came in to serve his pit stop.
The miscue from his team resulted in Schumacher being handed retrospective punishment from the IndyCar race officials. He was hit with a drive-through penalty.
This came after Schumacher had crashed during qualifying on another tough weekend for the 27-year-old.
Despite showing flashes of speed and promise, Schumacher has not managed to register a finish higher than 17th in his first eight IndyCar outings, including 18th on his Indy 500 debut.
Schumacher competed for Haas in F1 during the 2021 and 2022 seasons, before losing his seat.
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