Mercedes GP CEO Nick Fry has described the possibility of Michael Schumacher returning to Formula One as “fascinating”.
Speaking at the Motor Sport Business Forum in Monaco, Fry declined to reveal whether the seven-time world champion was in talks with Mercedes, but did admit his return, as well as one from 1997 champion Jacques Villeneuve, was an interesting prospect.
“I think whether it be Michael or having another prior world champion, it just adds another very interesting element,” said Fry.
“Can someone who's 40 or 41 years old compete against someone who is 24 years old? In other sports people have proven that they're very capable even at that age, and I think that would add another fascinating aspect.
“It's irrelevant whether it's Michael or Jacques, or I was joking with Mika [Hakkinen] the other day that maybe he should throw his hat in...”
Fry said signing an experienced driver was a priority for the team, but the driver didn’t necessarily have to be German. Fry also said an announcement was unlikely before Christmas.
“Nationality's literally got nothing to do with this at all," he said. "Mercedes expressed a preference, that it would be nice to have a driver who was German, and we've got that already with Nico [Rosberg].
“I think we learned very clearly this year that you've got to have two drivers capable of scoring points in every race.
"The reason we [Brawn GP] won the constructors' championship is because we had that. Both drivers did a sensational job and they were both very similar to each other. We knocked in the points at virtually every single race, and you need that.
"With the lack of testing, it's very difficult to expect a younger driver to do that. Clearly highest on our list are people with F1 experience.
“We might say something before Christmas but it's more likely to be the beginning of January."
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