Mick Schumacher has struggled to regain a place in F1 since leaving Haas at the end of 2022

Mick Schumacher is “clearly” one of the drivers on Cadillac’s list for their debut campaign, but Graeme Lowdon admits the list is “quite long.”

Cadillac will join the Formula 1 grid next season, the General Motors-backed team signing on as the sport’s official 11th team.

Could Mick Schumacher make his long-awaited F1 return?

The F1 2026 campaign begins in late January in a private session that will be held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya to give all the teams the chance to cover their first laps with the all-new cars behind closed doors.

But one of the big questions yet to be answered is, who will be behind the wheel of the two Ferrari-powered Cadillac F1 cars?

Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas are said to be leading the running, while former Sauber driver Zhou Guanyu and Aston Martin reserve Felipe Drugovich have also been linked with a seat.

Schumacher is also a candidate, according to Cadillac team principal Lowdon.

More on Cadillac and the American team’s key signings

“Mick is great,” Lowdon told Sky Deutschland. “He’s a very nice guy, I like him a lot. I’ve got to know him better now.

“He’s still young, but he already has Formula 1 experience. Of course, that was a while ago, but he’s kept himself up to date.

“He has also completed tests and shows great interest in the project.

“We really like that. We really like that.

“He is no stranger to the team. He knows where we stand. There are some positive things to say about Mick.

“He is clearly one of the drivers on the list.

“But,” Lowdon continued, “I should also say that the list is quite long.”

Schumacher last raced in Formula 1 in 2022 before being dropped by Haas after just two seasons in the grid. He initially took up the role of Mercedes reserve driver, a position he held for two years, before focusing solely on Alpine’s World Endurance Championship.

Fans may have to wait a while still to learn who will drive the Cadillac F1 car next season as Lowdon says right now the team’s priority is ensuring the two drivers have the best car possible to drive.

“The fans will have to excuse us for focusing on the car first,” he said. “If there is no car, there are no drivers.

“But it’s pretty good for us, there are a lot of really good drivers available at the moment – a mix of experienced and up-and-coming drivers from Formula 2.”

Cadillac could also opt to sign an American driver, which is the dream of director Mario Andretti.

IndyCar driver Colton Herta has been linked to the team, but bringing an American in may have to wait.

“Since we haven’t had a lot of participation as of late in Formula 1, I think to have a vehicle, to have a team to really truly consider American, I think that the idea of trying to look at bringing some talent from here is for real,” he told FOX earlier this year.

“[F1] is definitely riding a wave of popularity [in the US] — it’s unprecedented — but you still have to feed that.

“I think there’s a lot of national pride. The fact that we have three races here — why not have the opportunity to cultivate and have some of the US fans root for American drivers at one point?

“All of this is looking forward to the future. These are the things to work toward, because it’s all positive, and if you have a bubble, like we do here, you have to keep feeding that bubble. You don’t want to let it burst.”