Sebastian Vettel says Mick Schumacher "deserves" his Formula 1 opportunity next week.
The 20-year-old will test with Ferrari and Alfa Romeo over the two days in Bahrain, marking his first official run in a modern F1 car.
Unsurprisingly, the attention on Schumacher, which was already going to be significant, was even bigger on Thursday, with Vettel again calling for the pressure to be reduced.
"Obviously, with the name and being the son of Michael, there’s certainly some links and expectations," he said,
"The way he has developed in the last years, he deserves where he is now. Now we should give him the time and the peace to do his job."
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Indeed, before all the F1 activities, first Mick faces another major test in his first weekend of Formula 2 in the desert.
"For me, really, it’s important to start the season in F2 and then move on afterwards as everything is settled," he said to a scrum of reporters.
As for the extra media attention...
"Obviously, I’m the son of my dad and I’m happy that I am," he said.
"What he’s done is the best ever in F1 so it’s something I look up to and I’m happy to have him as my dad. I guess I’ve had the time and the chance to grow into that."
