This weekends French Grand Prix represents the start of a brand new challenge for Uralkali Haas F1 Team drivers Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin, as the first triple header of the season kicks off at the Paul Ricard Circuit.
Haas Team Principal Guenther Steiner has a very difficult challenge over the next three weeks, navigating his rookie drivers through one of the most demanding aspects of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship calendar. The Haas team principal however is optimistic going into the triple header, believing that it is good for the rookies to experience a triple header early on in their Formula One career.
“I think every challenge for them is good. They get exposed to the things that just happen in Formula 1. It’s a triple-header, you cannot change it, you have to deal with it. Sometimes it’s good because there’s no time between the races for distractions. They’re both young, they’ve got lots of energy, and racing’s what they want to do.
“For me, this is not a bad thing for them. They just need to keep focused and we see just how much they can do that. I think it’s good for them in the first part of their career, not just the season, to be exposed to this pressure. I’m sure they’ll cope very well with it.”
This weekend will also see more fans making a return to the championship, with 15,000 being allowed to enter each day of the French Grand Prix, a sign of normality for Steiner.
“For me, the most important thing is to get past this pandemic, so that everyone can move freely again – that’s what I look forward to. For sure, if we can get people to our races, that’s great as people can then see that normality is around the corner. We need to work hard to get there.
“An event with spectators is much more inspiring for everybody taking part in F1. I look forward and hope that we’ll see full race tracks again soon.”
