That said, the goals for Mick Schumacher are entirely straightforward now. As Motorsport.com reports, Meyer Shank Racing co-owner Mike Shank is demanding a significant step forward from the German driver as he steps into his sophomore year in North American open-wheel racing. Following a freshman campaign of character-building struggles paired with a few flashes of brilliance at Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Schumacher was confirmed as the team's second driver for 2027 in the #66 entry at the Laguna Seca Raceway season finale.
Shank is certainly not lowering the bar. "I expect him to be challenging for the top 10. Period," he told Motorsport.com.
This is not about his father. It's about what we think he can do for us and our partners and our sponsors,
The brutal adaptation curve from Formula 1 and the World Endurance Championship to the unique demands of IndyCar is something Shank views as a standard rite of passage. Pointing out that roughly ninety percent of top drivers endure a messy freshman year, Shank acknowledged that Schumacher fought through a difficult time while still managing to produce golden moments on track.
Meyer Shank Racing clearly loves a driver with something to prove. "Mick is our kind of driver. He's in the margin somewhere where people aren't quite sure about him. We see that he has potential, and we want to see where this goes," Shank explained. The target for the upcoming campaign is clear: top 10 finishes going forward, with hopes of sneaking even higher when the machine is truly singing.
Crucially, the famous family name had absolutely nothing to do with the contract. Shank made a point of telling both Mick and his mother, Corinna, directly that lineage meant nothing in the hiring process. "I told his mother, and I told him this two different times: I didn't hire Michael Schumacher. I mean, I was growing up, he's a great guy, great driver, never met the guy, but it just doesn't matter to me," Shank stated.
For the team, this partnership is entirely about pure performance and competitive ambition in a fierce field. Shank wants to capture a third Indy 500 victory, and he firmly believes they hold the right card to make it happen. "This is not about his father. It's about what we think he can do for us and our partners and our sponsors," Shank added. "I hire Mick Schumacher, not Michael."
