RLL shares fresh update on Mick Schumacher's 2026 IndyCar testing plans

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing's testing plans for Mick Schumacher before his highly anticipated IndyCar debut in 2026 have taken shape. The former F1 driver will participate in his first oval test at the 1.5-mile Miami-Homestead Speedway on February 4.

Schumacher has no experience racing on ovals, having raced in Europe for most of his career. The German driver didn't encounter any ovals during his two-year F1 stint (2021-2022) with Haas or during his two-year stint (2024-2025) in the World Endurance Championship with Alpine.

Mick Schumacher's only IndyCar experience was during his maiden test with RLL at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course on October 13 this year, which eventually led to their partnership for 2026. In November, shortly after their partnership was announced, RLL president Jay Frye revealed the team was planning seven preseason tests for the 25-year-old.

Recently speaking with RACER, Frye shed more light on those plans, saying:

"He’ll be in a car three weeks in a row - Homestead, Sebring, Phoenix. And we’ll get him on the simulator before then. He’ll go to an oval, street course, basically, with Sebring, then another oval, and that’s the first two races we have with a street and an oval. The sim schedule is being worked on, but we will certainly have Mick in the sim prior to going to Homestead."

A few days after Mick Schumacher's Miami test, IndyCar will conduct its two-day preseason test at Sebring on February 9-10 and another test at the Phoenix Raceway on February 17-18. This would give the former F1 driver ample opportunity to maximize his learning and hit the ground running at the season-opening Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 1.

Mick Schumacher sets his definition of what a successful 2026 IndyCar season would look like

Mick Schumacher at the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix Practice - Source: Getty

Though Mick Schumacher has open-wheel racing experience in F1, he will begin with a clean slate in IndyCar. Though he isn't afraid of the dangers associated with racing at 230 miles an hour on ovals, that stands out as a prominent challenge he'll encounter.

In an IndyCar press conference in late November, Schumacher spoke about what the ideal situation would be for him to call his 2026 rookie season a success.

"What would be a success, I think honestly, ultimately just the feeling that we've been able to put everything in place and that we put ourselves, let's say, as a target," the German replied (via ASAP Sports). "What that target exactly will be, I think that's something we'll have to figure out as we go and kind of match our expectations to what we can achieve."

"But I am very positive. I think there's lots of good things out there and lots of good things happening at the moment, so I don't want to say, okay, this is a target right now, but definitely our aim is to do our best, and that will be figure it out along the way," he added.

Mick Schumacher will participate in simulator sessions before his first oval test at Miami-Homestead, and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing also plans to have an IndyCar veteran and oval specialist assist him through his rookie season.