Ralf Schumacher criticizes Guenther Steiner’s unnecessary statements on Mick Schumacher
Ralf Schumacher has hit out at Guenther Steiner's public criticism of the drivers.
Mick Schumacher had a nasty crash in last weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix. On the entrance to turn 14, the German went a few centimeters wide, and over a wet patch. This made him lose control of the car, and he ended up in the wall at Turn 15 (Piscine). Schumacher was unhurt, but the car was almost completely totaled. Kevin Magnussen also retired, due to a power unit issue.
The car was split in half, which means it would cost a lot of money to repair. This is not Schumacher’s first major incident of the year, either. In qualifying at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, he took too much curb, and got sent into the wall. Two tires detached from the car immediately. Schumacher was unhurt, but could not participate in the race due to extensive damage to his car.
Repairing the car after such crashes is of course, not cheap. Aside from this, Schumacher was also involved in a comparatively minor incident with Sebastian Vettel, while they were both running in the points. Due to the damage from the incident, they both finished outside the points. Kevin Magnussen also had an incident with Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll, which prompted him to retire from the race.
Ralf Schumacher blamed his nephew for the Monaco crash and said: “The failure in the race was his fault. He got onto the wet and that’s a mistake you can’t afford to make.”
Mick’s team principal, was also critical of the German driver, but through a more subtle nod. Talking in Haas’ press release, Guenther Steiner said: “If you have any damage on the car, it gets more difficult so we’re hoping to not have any damage in Baku.”
Ralf did not like Guenther’s statement at all and has said earlier that he is not a fan of team bosses criticizing their drivers in public.
Ralf Schumacher: “The team have also made many mistakes”
The former Williams driver hit out at Haas’ team principal, pointing out that his nephew, Mick, is not the only one who is struggling or making mistakes.
“Such statements are typical of Güenther Steiner again. They leave too much to interpretation. It’s superfluous. The team have also made many mistakes.”
He agreed that Mick was making too many unnecessary mistakes, but he said that the lack of upgrades to the car and worsening reliability is not helping the drivers.
“Now two things have to come together. On the one hand, Mick has to be careful not to make any driving mistakes. But Haas also have to move on because [Kevin] Magnussen is also starting to struggle now.”
Haas looked strong during the first two race weekends, but their progress has stalled considerably. They have not implemented any major upgrades yet. Indeed, Haas have not scored a single point in the last three races.
“It is important everything comes together now. That there is no technical defect, that he (Mick) can drive his practice sessions and doesn’t make any mistakes. If both sides play better together, I don’t see a problem.”
Before the Spanish Grand Prix, Steiner had said that Haas expect a wait of around four to five races before upgrades. So there are still a few races to go before they introduce their first major upgrades of the season. Until then, it is important not to fall away from the rest of the competition.
Also Read: “He’s screwed up enough of his own”: Ralf Schumacher critical of Charles Leclerc
Aniket Tripathi
(1002 Articles Published)