The alarming situation triggered by the Russian invasion of Ukraine has also impacted some scenarios in Formula 1. One of these is the sponsorship agreement that binds Haas to Uralkali, a leading Russian mining company in the export of potassium which has guaranteed to the US team the financial supports that paved the way for Nikita Mazepin’s arrival in the team. Uralkali sees Mazepin’s father, Dmtry, among its shareholders.
After the first dramatic news arrived from Ukraine, Haas decided to change the livery of the car, removing the Uralkali logos and references to the colors of the Russian flag. A first position taken by the team, which will have to evaluate many scenarios in the coming days, including that of possible consequences that could compromise Mazepin’s presence at the start of the 2022 world championship.
Guenther Steiner, Team Principal, Haas F1
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
“As you have seen, we have changed our livery – commented Gunther Steiner – and as you can imagine there are legal issues that do not allow me to go into details. I learned about what was happening in Ukraine in the morning when I turned on the television, as I believe all of us, and I immediately felt with Gene Haas. “
“We got in touch with our other partners and then made the decision, very quickly, so you can assume that we were very direct. Of course it was necessary to involve the CEO of Haas Automation, who is in California so nine hours behind. to our time zone, and after concluding the first day of testing we changed the livery of the car ”.
Nikita Mazepin, Haas F1 Team
Photo by: Carl Bingham / Motorsport Images
Steiner responded without hesitation when asked if the eventual departure of the team’s main sponsor could have a major impact on the team’s financial situation.
“There are no problems on that front – he confirmed – there are more ways to obtain funding. There will be no impact on the team’s activity, management and operations are guaranteed, I spoke to the team yesterday and I told everyone there is nothing to worry about. We just have to tackle the trade issues, and we will do it in the coming weeks ”.
Regarding Mazepin’s position, Steiner confirmed that the future within the team will be subject to evaluations, since the scenario is not limited to a commercial relationship but also to the positions that the governments of the countries involved will take.
“There are no guarantees from any of the parties involved – clarified Gunther – because not everything depends on us in this affair, governments are involved and we have no power on this front. We have to wait and see how the situation will develop, it is an obstacle that suddenly appeared on the road that we did not expect. As a team we made the right decision right now, we wanted to send a clear message “
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