The departure of Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen from the Haas (and from Formula 1) at the end of the 2020 season inevitably forced the US team to focus on two other drivers for the current championship: in addition to the arrival in the team and in the category of Mick Schumacher, son of the seven-time world champion Michael , the second choice fell on Russian Nikita Mazepin, also coming from Formula 2 just like the German teammate.
Son of Dimitri, owner of the company and main sponsor of the team Uralkali, the engagement of the 22-year-old Muscovite immediately assumed the appearance of a more commercial than purely sporting agreement. Worsened controversy – and erupted even before the activity on the track with the appearance of the hashtag #SayNoToMazepin – during the continuation of the Russian number 9 world championship, enriched by numerous errors, accidents and misunderstandings with other drivers that have fueled the general discontent in his comparisons.
A climate perceived primarily by the person concerned, who admitted his mistakes in an interview with The Gazzetta dello Sport, while stating that he is learning from them in order to improve: “Everyone has an opinion on everything – Mazepin commented – it’s hard to admit, but 99% of the people who talk about me are based on what they hear or see on TV or social media, and they’ve never known me. Their thinking is irrelevant to me. I was lucky enough to grow up in a close family, living for 22 years with my father and other people I am close to. The only opinion that really matters to me is theirs. I have made mistakes and I keep making them, like everyone else, and the luck I mentioned earlier is that when I make them, I get a blow of the ears and I am told not to make them again. Consequentially, I learn and improve. I’m sure I can always say that they are better than yesterday“.
In the first season, and therefore in the role of rookie, Mazepin was at the center of many disputes by his direct colleagues on the track, often found blocked or hindered by the Russian as happened recently, in Turkey, also to Lewis Hamilton. In this regard, the number 9 of the Haas expressed a quick comment on these events: “I am a human being and I make mistakes too – he has declared – I go into a spin, I have some accident or I miss a fast lap. I’m working to be able to grow ”.
A career, his, which began with very different expectations even before the official debut on the track in 2021, thanks to the tests previously carried out at the wheel of the Mercedes. A transition from the best to the worst car of the lot that Mazepin himself commented as follows: “My arrival in F1 was definitely difficult – he concluded – I had encouraging tests before the start of the season, which then started with all the problems we know. A debut like this it lowers your confidence level and it takes time before he gets up. It’s hard, as is life “.
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