A lot has changed for Mick Schumacher and his mentor Sebastian Vettel in the past year, but one thing that will remain constant is them running the Race of Champions together as Team Germany.
“It’s great to be back at the Race of Champions and to see all the drivers again,” said Schumacher. “Even better that Sebastian will be competing too, so that Team Germany can hopefully live up to the tradition of fighting for the title in the ROC Nations Cup. I’m really looking forward to driving on ice again, and to spending time and fighting battles with this impressive roster of drivers attending.”
After beginning the 2022 Formula One season on the grid, Schumacher lost his seat at Haas and was picked up by Mercedes as their reserve while Vettel ended his decorated career. Vettel, a four-time World Champion, was Schumacher’s guide throughout his career and a close friend.
The duo first teamed up at Race of Champions in 2019, during which Vettel won the ROC Skills Challenge. When the event resumed three years later in Sweden, they joined forces again but were eliminated by Team USA’s Jimmie Johnson and Colton Herta in the Nations Cup. In the individual tournament, Schumacher was knocked out of the preliminary round by Jamie Chadwick of Britain while Vettel defeated Emma Kimiläinen (Finland), got revenge on Herta, and beat Tom Kristensen (Nordic) before falling to France’s Sébastien Loeb in the final.
Vettel previously won the 2015 ROC. He and Schumacher’s father Michael, who served in Vettel’s position to Mick, won the 2007 through 2012 Nations Cups for Germany.
The 2023 ROC on 28/29 January will be his first competition post-retirement. While Vettel has not outlined his plans for the future, he has been open to off-road racing since his 2022 ROC performance; Nitro Rallycross operator Travis Pastrana also extended him an invite to take part.
“I’m delighted that Mick will be joining me at the Race Of Champions again, for my first race since my retirement from Formula One,” commented Vettel. “Neither of us has much experience on snow and ice so it was a steep learning curve in Sweden earlier this year. I ended up surprising myself by getting to the individual final against Sébastien Loeb and now I can’t wait to come back and team up with Mick to see if we can take Team Germany all the way to another ROC Nations Cup title.”
Other confirmed names for ROC 2023 include Chadwick and David Coulthard (Britain), Felipe Drugovich (Brazil), Thierry Neuville (France), Johan Kristoffersson and Felix Rosenqvist (Sweden), and fellow F1 driver Valtteri Bottas (Finland).
