Nikita Mazepin says he's "99 per cent sure" he'll be back in Formula 1 someday
After his sudden exit from Formula One, former Haas driver Nikita Mazepin says that he is "99 per cent sure" he'll be back at the pinnacle of motorsport someday.
After Vladimir Putin ordered a military attack on Ukraine in February 2022, Haas decided to remove the Uralkali branding and logo from its cars and completed the last day of the Barcelona shakedown test with a white livery.
Uralkali has been the title sponsor of the American team since the start of the 2021 season. The Russian potash fertilizer producer and exporter is partly owned by Nikita Mazepin's father Dmitry, who is a close associate of Russian president Putin.
Speaking of the time since he exited Formula One to Russian site autosport.com.ru, Mazepin has admitted that he no longer watches grands prix.
"This is because I have a certain trauma from the premature end of my career in Formula 1. The feelings I experience when watching the races is like watching your girlfriend talk with her new man.
"I was among the top 20 drivers in the world, I had a 5-year contract with the Haas team, and I planned to spend at least 5 years in Formula 1 and achieve success there."
"Unfortunately there will be no Formula 1 trophy on my shelf," he now confirms. "I dreamed about this, and I lost it, but I found many other things, and it is not for me to judge which of these is more important."
The Moscow-born driver, who previously won two races in F1's main feeder series, the FIA Formula 2 championship, claims that is sure that he will make his comeback into Formula One someday.
"I am definitely on the business path. I am 99 percent sure that you will see me again in Formula 1 - but there is a nuance to that. In what role, I will leave this to fate. But business meets all my existential needs at the moment.
"I believe there are two ways in life - either strengthen your strengths, or work on your weaknesses. For now, I choose to strengthen my strengths."
"I have entrepreneurial genes by inheritance, plus education, plus a basis in sports," concluded Mazepin.
