Nikita Mazepin Unfazed by Haas’ Poor Form Ahead of F1 Debut

Haas have had a tough run over the last couple of years on the grid. The American team claimed an impressive P5 finish in 2018 but have since finished P9 in 2019 and 2020. After the 2020 season, the team revamped their drivers’ lineup, hoping to bring the team around.

The team signed young Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher for 2021. Even though they’re hoping to have a better season, Guenther Steiner has clarified that the team will continue to struggle because of the poor starting base of their 2020 car.

However, Mazepin stated that Haas’ struggles will not affect his enthusiasm for the F1 debut.

“I’m very much looking forward to it because graduating to F1 is going to be exciting regardless of how the performance of the car is. I think at this stage in my career, being a young driver, it’s irrelevant to speak whether the car is good or not.”

“I’m obviously aware that the team has had a difficult year, however, my focus is on getting ready for F1,” the Russian clarified.

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2021 calendar can be challenging, admits Haas driver Mazepin

Formula 1 has scheduled the 2021 calendar to be the longest in the sport’s history. Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin have been promoted from F2 and need to adapt to the vastly different F1 cars.

The Russian admits that such a long season is going to be very hectic on the drivers, especially for the ones making their debut. “The calendar is going to be also almost double what I’m used to so those are the challenges that are ahead of me and that is my focus for now,” he said.

Nikita Mazepin ran into a serious controversy following the announcement of his F1 promotion. The controversy almost had the Russian lose his Haas seat however, the team continued the season with a similar lineup.

The American team is desperately hoping for a turnaround because a couple more bad seasons could shut the team down for good. Do you believe Mick and Nikita will be the Haas’ knights in shining armor?