IndyCar news: Mick Schumacher to drive in IndyCar in 2026 with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL) have signed a contract with the German driver to drive for them next year after testing with the team in October 2025.
Here, Sports News Blitz writer Ayla Vaughan explores Schumacher’s past performances and future as a driver in IndyCar.
Details of the racing contract
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing announced on Monday, November 25 that Mick Schumacher will race in IndyCar in 2026 with the team after leaving the World Endurance Championship (WEC).
Schumacher will drive in the No. 47 Honda for RLL alongside Graham Rahal (a veteran of the team who has six wins and 29 podiums) and Louis Foster (the 2024 INDY NXT champion and the 2025 IndyCar Rookie of the Year).
The German will hope to adapt quickly to these new circuits in North America as well as the car itself, which will be more familiar to him since he has raced in single-seaters for the majority of his career.
Nonetheless, Schumacher will no doubt be eager to start this new chapter of his career by racing full time in IndyCar in 2026 in another motorsport category.
He will race against his fellow Europeans in Prema, Callum Illott and Robert Schwartzman, with whom he won two junior championships with.
The former Haas driver will get to experience oval racing for the first time in 2026 as six of the 17 races in the series next year will take place on circle tracks, including the famous Indy 500.
The 26-year-old driver told IndyCar that:
“I am delighted to confirm today that I will be competing in the INDYCAR SERIES next year with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, taking part in the full season.
“Having both an F1 and an endurance background, and having competed in various racing series over the years, I have insights and knowledge that I am sure will contribute to a great partnership.
“RLL prepared me extremely well during testing already, and I am sure that we can build a lot together.
“I was also immediately excited about the car and the American way of motorsport, which comes across as being more about pure and direct racing, and it is precisely this aspect that I am very much looking forward to.
“And of course, I am curious about new experiences and always interested in broadening my horizons.
“For me, a new journey is beginning here, and I am excited for the season to start.”
RLL co-owner Bobby Rahal added:
“I think I speak for everyone at RLL when I say how thrilled we are to welcome Mick to the team and to INDYCAR.
“His test with us on the IMS road course was exceptional – he impressed every single team member.
“Everyone walked away from that event determined to do what we could to bring Mick into our program.
“We’re thrilled he’s chosen to join us, and we can’t wait to get to work.”
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His achievements in motorsport categories
Schumacher switched to American motorsports via the European ladder series, getting up to Formula 1, but was unable to remain in the highest league and instead did endurance racing.
He was a runner-up in the junior direct-drive Karting World Championship and Karting European Championship in 2014, showing great talent from a young age.
The German then finished runner-up in both ADAC F4 and Italian F4 in 2016 once again, just falling short of securing a championship.
After finishing third in the MRF Challenge Championship in 2016-2017, Schumacher moved to Formula 3, where he won the championship with Prema in 2018, his first-ever title.
Naturally, he moved up to Formula 2 for 2019, where he won the title in 2020 with Prema once again, showing his competitiveness and good racecraft.
The German was also a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy from 2019-2022 and went on to participate in rookie testing for Alfa Romeo and Haas in F1 in 2020.
He eventually signed with Haas and drove in F1 from 2021-2022, where he struggled in his rookie year since the car was not performing well, meaning he scored no points the whole year.
The following year, Schumacher scored his maiden points finish at the British Grand Prix, followed by a career-best sixth at the Austrian Grand Prix.
However, after a series of high-profile crashes, he was released by Haas at the end of the season, and became a reserve driver for both Mercedes and McLaren in 2023.
Before moving to the US, the German drove for Alpine in WEC from 2024-2025, where he scored three podiums.
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