Michael Schumacher 's 15-year-old son is to follow in his father 's footsteps after he signed a deal to compete in the Formula 4 series , which nurtures young talents . Mick Schumacher has been snapped up by the Netherlands ' Van Amersfoort Racing team after he finished second in the world , European and German kart championships last season . His father Michael is the most successful driver in Formula One history , with seven titles , but retired from the sport after a devastating ski accident left him in a coma . Family business : Mick Schumacher , 15 , has signed a deal to race for Van Amersfoort Racing in Formula 4 . Experience : Mick finished runner-up in the world , European and German kart championship last year . Champion : Michael Schumacher is the most successful driver in Formula One history , with seven titles . Fritz van Amersfoort , owner of the racing team that bears his name , said of Schumacher Jr , 'we have watched his skills in test driving and are looking forward to a successful season . ' Mick is the first driver named by Van Amersfoort Racing for the 2015 season . The team propelled Max Verstappen - son of Schumacher Sr 's 1994 Benetton F1 team-mate Jos - to prominence in Formula 3 last season . Verstappen Jr , 17 , will now race for Toro Rosso in the 2015 F1 season . 'In the last couple of years , it has become a tradition for us that we offer the runner-up from the German junior karting championship a test session in our simulator , ' added Mr Van Amesfoort . 'This is handled by the DMSB , the German motorsport authority , and that is how we first got in touch with Mick Schumacher last autumn . 'He spent a full day in the simulator at our headquarters in the Netherlands , then we witnessed him during a test session at Valencia and , eventually , we reached an agreement to compete together in this year 's ADAC Formula 4 series . ' Mick Schumacher could follow the path of Max Verstappen , who also raced for Van Amersfoort Racing . 17-year-old Verstappen will drive for Toro Rosso in the 2015 F1 season after his prodigious rise . Announced in 2013 and first run last year , Formula 4 is an open-wheeled motor racing competition designed for junior drivers as a stepping stone to Formula One . Vehicles may have a maximum power output of 160hp and must cost less than €9,500 . There is no global championship , but individual nations can host their own championships according to rules and specifications of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . Michael Schumacher suffered severe head injuries in a skiing accident in Meribel in the French Alps in December 2013 . He emerged from an induced coma in June last year , and left hospital in September . He has since started to recognise family members , according to someone claiming to be a family friend . Philippe Streiff , a former Formula One driver , told French media Schumacher 'has yet to recover the power of speech ' but is 'nevertheless starting to recognise those close to him ' . Michael Schumacher was seriously injured after a skiing accident in December 2013 . Schumacher snr is Formula One 's most successful ever driver with seven world championships . Schumacher takes the chequered flag upon winning the Canadian Grand Prix for Benetton in 1994 . And in January a report claimed Schumacher 's recovery had reached a point where he now cries when he hears the sound of his children 's voices . According to an article in the Italian newspaper Corriere della Serra , the fact Schumacher is reacting with tears to his loved ones ' voices is 'valuable news ' , after a year of seeming 'really far away ' . Writing in the paper , Giorgio Terruzi said : 'Schumi cries . And sometimes mysteriously . He cries when he hears his children , his wife 's voice , his dogs . In the silence of that room , a tear runs down his thin face at a known sound . ' He added : 'Inside this we can find ... There is life , enclosed in a drop ; there is the strength of a man who is moved and that moves each of us . We have his tears , his senses exposed . ' However , Schumacher 's manager has disputed reports of her client 's recovery , saying the 46-year-old faces a 'long fight ' for recovery and that Streiff is not a family friend . 'We need a long time , ' Sabine Kehm said . 'He is making progress appropriate to the severity of the situation .
Mick Schumacher came second last year in Germany 's kart championships . His father Michael Schumacher won a record seven world F1 titles . Philippe Streiff hero has been in a coma since skiing accident in December 2013 .