Mick Schumacher says he still believes he has what it takes to make it in F1, and isn’t shutting the door on the possibility of a Cadillac drive.

Schumacher, son of seven-time F1 World Champion Michael, is still chasing a return to the Formula 1 grid more than two years after losing his drive with the Haas outfit.

Mick Schumacher: Everything is an option

Schumacher is yet to be successful in his quest, with the German having become reserve driver with Mercedes over the past two years opening the door of possibility that team boss Toto Wolff could turn to him to replace the departing Lewis Hamilton for F1 2025.

But Wolff instead plumped for the unproven Kimi Antonelli, with the 17-year-old Italian making his debut for the Brackley-based squad when the season kicks off in Australia next week.

Given that Mercedes opted against Schumacher, while Alpine – for whom Schumacher races in the World Endurance Championship – also haven’t shown much interest in placing him in an F1 cockpit, the door of opportunity for a comeback appears to be shrinking very quickly.

But Schumacher is still clinging to the hope of a return and, following recent comments from two-time F1 World Champion Mika Hakkinen in which the Finn didn’t rule out a comeback for him, said, “Of course, it’s nice to hear that from Mika. He knows the sport very well.

“As I’ve said in interviews before, I feel like I have what it takes for F1. We’ll see what happens; the year is still long, and my goal is to return in 2026. We’ll see what unfolds.”

A potential option for Schumacher could yet emerge in the form of the new Cadillac team. The American squad received formal approval to join the grid for F1 2026 this week, with the Graeme Lowdon-led effort yet to reveal their drivers for their maiden campaign.

Experience will likely count for Cadillac, while leading American talent Colton Herta is likely to be a serious contender for one of the cockpits. A potential return for the likes of former Red Bull driver Sergio Perez could also be attractive for Cadillac, although Schumacher’s seemingly untapped potential could lead to serious consideration.

“At this point, everything is an option,” he told Speedweek.com.

More on F1 2026

👉 F1 2026 driver line-up: Who is already confirmed for the 2026 grid?

👉 Revealed: The six drivers out of contract at the end of the F1 2025 season

Hakkinen, who was perhaps Michael Schumacher’s greatest rival, said he believes Mick should continue to press on looking for a return.

“I think he still has a chance to return to Formula 1. The door is still open,” he said as per Motorsport.com. “You just have to talk to the right people.

“He has experience in Formula 1 and he has experience from different racing classes. And he’s young. These are all good things, these are all positive factors.

“But Formula 1 is an extremely demanding environment today. If you make three, four, five mistakes and damage the car, it costs the team a fortune. And that’s exactly what the teams don’t like. They don’t want to spend money on repairing a broken car.”

Helmut Marko and Bernie Ecclestone have each told Schumacher to give up on the dream, while his former team boss Guenther Steiner, who was quite critical of Schumacher during the 2022 season, told Germany’s RTL that it “will be difficult” for Schumacher to return.

“If you don’t drive for a long time – and this year there were a lot of seats free- then it’s kind of difficult to get back in there.”

“I don’t think so,” he said of the prospect of Schumacher returning to the grid in F1 2026.

“I don’t think he will.”

Schumacher competed in the Race of Champions this weekend, partnering Sebastian Vettel for Team Germany – the duo were knocked out in the semi-finals of the Nations Cup, before Schumacher lost out over two quarter-final races in the semi-finals of the individual competition against reigning Supercars champion Will Brown.

Read Next: Abused F1 legend reveals considering quitting social media