Mazepin after Haas sacking: Where are the ‘values’ in F1?

Nikita Mazepin has accused Haas of “not playing the cleanest game” with his sacking from F1 and criticised them for keeping “sponsorship money without fulfilling the contract”.

F1 Desk_1

20 Apr 2022

Russian driver Mazepin was sacked by Haas ahead of the 2022 F1 season because of his country’s invasion of Ukraine.

Haas were sponsored by Uralkali, the company run by Mazepin’s billionaire father, but this relationship ended due to the situation between Russia and Ukraine.

Uralkali demanded that Haas repay $13 million in sponsorship money for the 2022 season - but the American team responded by asking for a further $8.6 million in loss of earnings.

Mazepin, who is now without a seat in F1, told CNN about returning eventually: “I would say the biggest issue here is coming back to the sport where teams are allowed to be keeping sponsorship money without fulfilling the contract.

“And even asking for more, even though they say they don't want money from Russia. So I'm not sure, but the sport values need to be evaluated for me after this.”

Will Nikita Mazepin return to F1?

He added about his nationality affecting his return to F1: “Everybody has a right to speak or not to speak and the FIA, the highest governing body, has enabled me to compete as long as I'm neutral.”

Mazepin only competed for one season but is targeting a comeback: “It's difficult to say at this moment in time, because I'm very wary that my issue is that I've lost a job.

“I was trying to get to F1 for 17 years and then I eventually got there. But it's a very minor issue if you compare to the big things that are going on in the world right now.

Nikita Mazepin (RUS) Haas F1 Team returns to the

“Of course, I would love to get back to the sport. I feel that I've got a lot of unfinished business there.

“But I need to wait until things cool down. And I don't even know who I can get back to because, you know, Haas has obviously done what they did with playing not the cleanest game, in my opinion. But it's different for me.”

Mazepin said about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine: “My view is that, whatever is going on right now, and I can only see a very small bit from where I am in Moscow, it's very painful,

“And I definitely feel it.

“I've been living for 23 years, and I was living in a very calm world. But as to my official position, I've said many times that it's very important to be neutral for me, because I'm an athlete.

“And I feel that it's important to be able to be neutral. Even for that, I have created a foundation that will help athletes stay neutral in principle.”

In 2021, ahead of his debut season in F1, Mazepin was told that he must compete under a neutral flag due to a ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) relating to state-sponsored doping.

Mick Schumacher and Kevin Magnussen are driving for Haas this season.

Full race weekend schedule in UK (BST) time:

Friday, April 22

12:30pm to 1:30pm - Practice 1

4pm to 5pm - Qualifying

Saturday, April 23

11:30pm to 12:30pm - Practice 2

3:30pm to 4:30pm - Sprint Qualifying

Sunday, April 24

2pm to 4pm - Race

How can I watch on TV in the UK?

Sky Sports F1 is live on Friday April 22 at 12pm ahead of Practice 1, and at 3:25pm ahead of qualifying, then at 11am on Saturday April 23 for Practice 2.

Sprint qualifying build-up begins on Sky Sports F1 at 2:30pm on Saturday, April 23.

Channel 4 will show highlights from qualifying at 6:45pm

Race build-up for the Australian Grand Prix begins at 12:30pm on Sunday, April 24 on Sky Sports F1.

Channel 4 will show race highlights at 6:30pm