Antonio Giovinazzi and two other candidates in the running for Nikita Mazepin’s lost seat at Haas
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Antonio Giovinazzi(on the left), Pietro Fittipaldi(middle) and Nico Hulkenberg(on the right)
Following the tense Russia-Ukraine situation, American-based racing team Haas was forced to let go of their primary sponsor Uralkali. This move from Haas also meant that they couldn’t guarantee a seat for Nikita Mazepin, Uralkali’s owner Dmitry’s son.
Formula One started the steps towards showing their contempt for Russia invading Ukraine by firstly scrapping the race at St. Petersburg which was supposed to be held later this season. Haas on the other hand, started with removing the Uralkali logo from their livery along with the Russian flag inspired designs on it.
Earlier last week on March 5, Gene Haas’ racing team officially confirmed in a brief statement that Haas Racing and Nikita Mazepin have parted ways. What remains a place of concern is the identity of Mick Schumacher’s new teammate for the 2022 season. However, it is to be noted that the team will reveal the Haas driver’s new teammate before the second phase of testing in Bahrain.
Mazepin’s disappointment and possible replacements for Mazepin
Mazepin who earlier seemed to be confident in his ability to retain his Formula One seat, was met with a sense of disbelief yet expected results on his termination as a Formula One driver. On being asked about his thoughts on the termination, the former Haas driver replied, “I am very disappointed that my Formula 1 contract was terminated. Of course I understand the difficult situation, but I was ready to accept all the conditions of the FIA to stay in Formula 1. Unfortunately, that was completely ignored. There was no normal discussion process with this unilateral decision.”
We also have rumours of possible replacements for Mazepin. Brazilian Pietro Fittipaldi seems to be the more popular candidate for the seat, given his extensive background with Haas as a racing driver. The experience with Haas is one of the major factors which makes him a possible replacement for Mazepin. Guenther Steiner, Haas’ Team Principal has also been very vocal about Fittipaldi being the only one in the running for the seat given his association with the American racing team.
Two other suitable candidates for the empty seat are Antonio Giovinazzi and Nico Hülkenberg. Giovinazzi was let go as an Alfa Romeo driver following the curtains being drawn on the 2021 season. He could make an unprecedented entry into the grid again this season. Hülkenberg is currently serving as Aston Martin’s test driver, but he’s contractually bound as of the moment. Another candidate for the running is recently crowned Formula 2 champion Oscar Piastri.
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Rishika Saha
(445 Articles Published)