Franz Tost has admitted he would have liked to sign Mick Schumacher to race for AlphaTauri this season.
But, as he explained, there was a reason why such a move didn't materialise. Schumacher was released by Haas at the end of last season after just two seasons, leaving the German to take up a reserve role with Mercedes rather than another race seat.
AlphaTauri had already signed Nyck de Vries by that point, to replace Pierre Gasly. But even if that wasn't the case, long-serving team principal Tost explained there was another key reason why there was never any hope of signing Schumacher.
"He was an issue [of conversation] for me, personally," he told German outlet RTL. "I would actually have liked to have Mick in the car. Mick is talented and that he also has what it takes to drive successfully in Formula 1."
But, as he went on to explain, the fact that he was still a part of the Ferrari driver academy presented a stumbling block. Even though he has since been released to join Mercedes as a reserve, Tost said there were "political reasons" why it couldn't happen for them.
That assessment echoes what Helmut Marko said about Schumacher late last year. The Red Bull adviser seemed to hint that the German had at least been considered for that open race seat at their sister team, or as a reserve for the defending champions, but admitted it was very unlikely to happen.
"He was never an option for us because he was always part of the Ferrari program. That's why he was not interesting for us," declared the Austrian. "Especially since our reserve driver has to participate in many sponsored events in the United States. [Daniel] Ricciardo is therefore the right person with his profile and his image."
Despite clearly being disappointed over not having the chance to sign the young racer, Tost spoke positively about Schumacher's new Mercedes role. He believes the 23-year-old will "learn a great deal" as deputy to Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, and that it will "hopefully bring him back to the starting field at some point".
Schumacher's old boss at Haas, Guenther Steiner, also hopes it works out well. "Sometimes one step back is two steps forward. He's put himself in a good position with a team where he has the best chance for a regular cockpit in the future," he recently said.
