The world crisis caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has had an immediate effect on Formula 1. In the absence of knowing what will happen to the race scheduled for September in Sochi, for now the Haas team has already taken a step forward by withdrawing the stickers of Uralkaliits main sponsor, its single-seater and trucks.
Haas has thus become one of the protagonists of this preseason, and not precisely because of the performance of its pilots or the VF-22, which is not being good either. Nikita Mazepin is at the heart of the matter, since his father Dmitry is the owner of Uralkali and his company will be one of those affected by the economic sanctions that the international community is going to impose on the Vladimir Putin (a personal friend, moreover, of the Mazepin family).
The Russian pilot, for the moment, has not spoken since the invasion of sovereign Ukrainian territory began. He was scheduled to appear at the official press conference this Friday, but by mid-morning they reported that he would not. Instead, Haas called out Guenther Steinerhis team leader, who gave the corresponding explanations.
The situation has become untenable. After removing all the Uralkali stickers, he has explained that next week they will make a decision about the contract they have with the Mazepin in this regard. From his words, he hints that they are trying to break that link: “There are legal issues that we have to deal with and we will see what comes out.”
Steiner also assures that, in case Uralkali comes out, it does not mean that the structure will disappear, at least not immediately. “The team is not affected by this. I talked to them yesterday and told them that there is nothing to worry about. We made the right decision to send a message to everyone », he argued about the withdrawal of the logo of the chemical company.
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What will happen to Nikita Mazepin?
Another very different matter is at what point Nikita Mazepin will be if he loses his father’s briefcase as the main (and practically only) argument to continue as a Formula 1 driver. Steiner does not guarantee, far from it, the continuity of the Muscovite. “It has to be resolved. There are governments involved and I have no power over them and we need to see how the situation in Ukraine develops,” he admitted.
Although the situation is far from being the desired one to start the season, Steiner trusts that it will not affect them too much. “No one planned this. And then we had to make a decision, because now we also have more partners. I think this was the right decision to make. There is no setback for the competitive side of the team because of this. None at all,” he promised.
Photos: Haas F1 Team