Schumacher and Mazepin no longer 'know it alls' - Steiner

Haas team principal Guenther Steiner believes Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin are no longer "fish out of water" in F1 after coming into the sport believing they knew everything.

It has been a tough learning year for the young German and Russian drivers as they have been forced to 'compete' in a car woefully off the pace and that has never been developed during the campaign due to the focus on the 2022 regulations.

With two races remaining, Haas sits bottom of the constructors' standings without a point, with its best finish being a 12th from Schumacher in the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Reflecting on their rookie seasons, Steiner said: “The area where they have improved most is when I see them coming in on a Thursday now, you can see they have been around.

"At the beginning of the season, they were a little bit of a fish out of water, as much as they think they know what F1 is. Not in a negative way.

"It is normal when you get in an environment like this but I think they have matured a lot."

Steiner feels the initial excitement the pair would have felt at jumping into the car, despite its lack of competitiveness, has worn off.

"They don’t have to think, it has become automatic what they have to do on Thursdays and when they get in the car on Fridays," added Steiner. "That is all good.

“Performance-wise, I think they know how they are working with the engineers. They know a lot more than they knew eight months ago.

“It’s just like I always told them, you will just find out in six months how little you knew when you came in, even if in the moment you think you know it all.

“That is an apprenticeship. That is what rookie years are. You are learning every day and every week.”

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