While a driver like Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen may hog most of the F1 headlines this year, there is a third name the eyes of the world would be upon – Mick Schumacher. The son of F1 legend Michael, Mick will be making his debut with Haas this year and has opted to sport the number 47. The number may seem odd, at least to some like Martin Brundle, but the German has a perfectly good rationale behind it.

Brundle, a former F1 driver himself, felt a bit sad for Mick. The reason? Because most of the traditional or iconic numbers have already been chosen by other drivers on the grid.

Brundle was quoted by Planet F1 saying, “Mick Schumacher has had to take an ugly number. All of the best numbers are taken.

“It doesn’t feel like a Formula 1 number.”

However, Schumacher Jr. revealed that it wasn’t just a random number; there is a reason he went with 47.

Why did Mick Schumacher opt for #47?

The to-be-F1 debutant said (translated via Google), “The number 47 is something… I was thinking and choosing the number, I wasn’t sure. I wanted the number 4, then I wanted the number 7 but it was already busy and so I thought” why not join them ?!

“First I thought about 74 but then I said “no!” and I thought about 47.

“It is the same and contains many coincidences for those who want to find them. If you take all the dates of birth of my family, the sum is 47. Then if you think that 4 and 7 were the numbers I wanted, now it’s nice to have them with me.

“Some fans said 4 and 7, ‘For Michael’ and that meaning is also very nice. “

The young German is already amongst the most loved drivers on the grid. Nearly everyone is rooting for him and expects him to do well. However, one mustn’t forget that Mick has a history of getting off to poor starts in his debut seasons, even Red Bull’s advisor believes it’ll be tough for the F2 champion.

But then again, racing for Haas, there is only so much that the 21-year-old can achieve. His most realistic expectation would be to beat his teammate and perhaps secure a points finish or two. If he can do a lot more than that in 2021, then he might just be a very, very special driver indeed.

Also Read: Mick Schumacher Must “Outperform” Subpar Haas F1 Car: Brundle