The third driver in the Ferrari house, who has just returned from his first season in Formula E was hired by Haas to play a free practice session over two weekends: Monza and Austin. Two important appointments, as the first is the "home" weekend for Giovinazzi, while the second is for the American team. Giovinazzi left the Circus and his seat in Alfa Romeo in 2022. His dream was to continue racing in F1 and perhaps do so with a promotion in Ferrari Obviously. But Rossa and Antonio took two different paths. Remaining in the Ferrari ecosystem, in a couple of weeks he will have the opportunity to get back behind the wheel of an F1 in an official session. However, he will do it in Haas, a customer team for Ferrari.
Not being a rookie, this debut will not relieve Haas from the forced task of dedicating 2 test sessions to young rookies, which will take away further hours from the two official drivers, Magnussen and Schumacher. If Giovinazzi wasn't "indispensable" then why Haas did he choose it?
“Market” pressures
The drivers' market rekindled at the beginning of August after the news of the arrival of Fernando Alonso in Aston Martin to replace Hag who will retire at the end of the year, and of the renunciation of Oscar piastri to Fernando's seat in the Alpine, which "by right" would have been his due. With an empty seat and contracts still unsigned, the various rumors spread like wildfire. One of the names to have ended up in the cyclone is that of Mike Schumacher, still waiting for a call from Guenther Steiner to discuss the renewal of the contract which, according to the current version, would end at the end of 2022. We are now in the second and last part of the season which will end in mid-November. Time is running out and while the negotiations go on the championship is ready to restart with a hat-trick in which it is essential to do well.
Pressure and results don't mix so well and Mick's situation also demonstrates that, until he reached his first points in F1, just before the summer break, he continued to "suffer" from too much pressure deriving from his inconclusive races. Giovinazzi could be Haas's option in case Mick fails again. Engaging him for 2 free practice sessions could be a sort of warning for Mick, a way to further test him, or to stimulate him to give his best, having an ultimatum before his eyes that could also take the form of two other ready drivers to replace it, which ones Ricciardo and Hulkenberg.
Haas should focus on its pilots
For Norbert Haug, former Mercedes vice president for sports activities, the choice of the American team led by Guenther Steiner only makes things worse, taking away precious time from Mick Schumacher's growth. "Every kilometer skipped by one of the riders certainly doesn't help him on the race weekend. I don't know if there is a contractual agreement with Ferrari behind Giovinazzi's choice, but a team like Haas should focus on its drivers. If the team says it is expecting more points, then the driver can reply that he would have expected more free practice“, emphasized the German.
"Mick battled Hamilton in Austria, with a seven-time world champion. And whoever manages to do such a thing is certainly not without talentHaug continued, adding: “If you support a rider and give him an opportunity, then progress can be seen. A rider is a racehorse, not a workhorse, for the plough. Mick has one of his favorite tracks in Spa, he did excellent races in F3 and F2. I have a lot of faith in him“, he concluded in the interview broadcast by Sky Germany.
Source statements: FormulaPassion
