Formula One team Haas have announced the termination of Nikita Mazepin’s contract.
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the 23-year-old’s future in the sport became in doubt with F1 allowing him to race but demanding he remove any symbols or flags of his home country.
It was also rumoured that Mazepin would have to publicly disavow Vladimir Putin’s actions, with his participation in the British Grand Prix already over following a Motosport UK decision.
In the immediate aftermath of the invasion, he told reporters he was “not struggling” to take part in pre-season testing, adding “I've always been a big supporter of sports without politics”.
Not only was the Moscow-born racer a Haas driver, his oligarch father Dmitry’s company, Uralkali, sponsored the team. As a result, the car sported a Russian flag style livery last year and was set to do so again this season until the war.
On Saturday, a Haas statement confirmed the deals with both Mazepin and Uralkali were terminated with immediate effect.
It read: “Haas F1 team has elected to terminate, with immediate effect, the title partnership of Uralkali, and the driver contract of Nikita Mazepin.
“As with the rest fo the Formula 1 community, the team is shocked and saddened by the invasion of Ukraine and wishes for a swift and peaceful end to the conflict.”
Ahead of the new season, which begins this month in Bahrain, F1 had already terminated its contract with the Russian state-owned track in Sochi for its annual Grand Prix.
The decision draws a likely end to the young driver’s career in F1, which began under a shroud of controversy after he filmed himself groping a woman in a car - something he claimed to have been a joke before apologising.
In 21 races, he failed to pick up a single championship point and his best race finish was 14th.
After the announcement, Mazepin stated: “I am very disappointed to hear my F1 contract has been terminated.
“While I understand the difficulties, the ruling from the FIA plus my ongoing willingness to accept the conditions proposed in order to continue were completely ignored and no process was followed in this unilateral step.
“I have treasured my time in F1 and genuinely hope we can all be together again in better times.”
