This brings an end to Nikita Mazepin's career in Formula 1 for now, although it is always possible he makes his way back to the sport.
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The Haas F1 team on Saturday (March 5) confirmed that Russian driver Nikita Mazepin is no longer contracted to the team.
This brings an end to Mazepin‘s career in Formula 1 for now, although it is always possible he makes his way back to the sport.
“Haas F1 team has elected to terminate, with immediate effect, the title partnership of Uralkali, and the driver contract of Nikita Mazepin,” read a statement from the team.
“As with the rest of the Formula 1 community, the team is shocked and saddened by the invasion of Ukraine and wishes for a swift and peaceful end to the conflict.”
But the move does not come as a surprise. Mazepin’s future was in doubt after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began in earnest.
Also read: McLaren CEO Zak Brown slams ‘brutal’ Red Bull for constant driver changes
This is due to the fact that his father, Dimitry Mazepin, is close to the Kremlin – and Russian president Vladimir Putin. What’s more, Dimitry’s company Uralkali were Haas’ title sponsors.
Indeed, their deal hinged on the fact that Mazepin would be given a seat in F1. Thus, once Haas ended the deal with them there was little hope for the Russian to retain his seat.
As of now, Haas have not announced a replacement driver yet. But team principal Gunther Steiner has said that Emerson Fittipaldi would be the team’s first choice.
Of course, whether or not the team choose another rookie driver remains to be seen.
Sadly, harsh as it may seem, few fans will lament the fact that Mazepin lost his seat to begin with. Indeed, it’s hard to think of a driver less popular among fans before even debuting.
This is because many felt – with some justification – that he wouldn’t be in F1 without his father’s money. And there was also the incident where he posted a video online of him seemingly groping a woman.
All of this actually led to many fans to ask for his removal before the 2021 season. And the Russian did not help himself, spinning multiple times in his first race weekend.
This included race day at Bahrain, when he spun early despite being in the back of the grid.
This led to him being dubbed ‘Mazespin’ by many on social media. And it was a moniker that stuck, given he would spin on track more often.
To make things worse, he was comfortably beaten by fellow rookie teammate Mick Schumacher through the season.
