5 reasons why mazepin does not deserve the hate he receives

Nikita Mazepin has not won any popularity prizes since joining the big guns in Formula 1, being the centre of attention for social media trolls and being heavily criticised by other drivers on the track.

Before Mazepin even participated in a race weekend, the Russian driver stamped his name as a villain of the sport after he uploaded an inappropriate video to Instagram.

Although the Haas F1 team allowed him to keep his seat, and his actions should always be condemned, the ongoing hate has jumped to a level we may not have ever seen before for a rookie Formula 1 driver.

But here is why i believe that Mazepin does not deserve all the hate he is receiving:

1. Rookie mistakes are forgivable - How often do we find young drivers never make mistakes in their first season in Formula 1? Mazepin may not be perfect, but driver errors including spins in practice session that do not effect anybody else on the track (apart from a brief yellow flag) are a given for someone with his experience. Same with blocking other drivers in qualifying, it is not ideal, yet these are rookie mistakes every driver will make in their career.

Ferrari driver, Charles Leclerc stated that Mazepin "will never learn" at the 2021 Spanish Grand Prix, providing a perfect example of the excessive criticism the Haas driver is receiving in only his fourth career race weekend.

2. He brings in money - Haas F1 team have been struggling for multiple years now in Formula 1, the Netflix series 'Drive to survive' has given fans an insight on how much the team has struggled from a business standpoint, and to why bringing in drivers like Mazepin and Schumacher may potentially save the team from folding.

Dmitry Mazepin, Nikita's father, is a Russian billionaire who owns an integrated chemicals company and is heavily invested in his sons career in motorsports. The addition of the Mazepin family into the Haas team ensures additional funding for the American team to continue operation.

Since the American company 'Liberty Media' took over Formula 1 in 2016, the growth and promotion of the sport in the United States has become a top priority.

Having an American team participating in the sport is vital to that growth, meaning losing a driver like Nikita Mazepin and his family money could have a drastic effect on the American viewership of the sport.

Although most Formula 1 audiences will not focus on the business aspect of the sport, it is important to understand the figures behind Mazepin being a contracted Formula 1 driver.

3. He was impressive in Formula 2 - After joining ART Racing in 2019, Mazepin had a fairly quiet debut season in the second division of Formula racing, finishing 18th in the championship and not having much of an impression overall.

Heading into his second season, Mazepin was able to secure his first win of the season in the feature race at Silverstone, following a solid performance a couple of weeks before in Budapest, claiming a podium.

Throughout the season, aggressive defending and overtaking moves hit the headlines of some race weekends, although some being criticised for being "overly aggressive" and receiving multiple penalties to go with it, his driving style showed signs of a future Formula 1 driver in the making.

The Russian driver was able to put together some solid results for the rest of the season, eventually finishing the championship in fifth place behind two other now-rookie drivers in Mick Schumacher and Yuki Tsunoda.

Mazepin's Formula 2 career could be an indication on how he progresses as a driver. Although his first season was not up to scratch, he was able to use his experience heading into the following season to give his team the results they needed. Could this be the case in Formula 1?

4. He is being overshadowed by Mick Schumacher - Imagine being teamed up with one of the most exciting prospects in motorsport racing over the last decade, in only your first ever season of formula 1, a lot of pressure right?

But let's be real for a moment, it is obvious that in terms of qualifying pace Mazepin does not live up to the standards of Schumacher, but when those rookie mistakes we mentioned earlier are not happening, he is not as far behind as everybody makes him out to be.

Mazepin's average grid position is 19.40, behind Schumacher's of 18.60. While his average finishing position is 18.00, behind Schumacher's 17.00. Only one place difference.

5. The Haas car is poor - As mentioned earlier, Haas have been struggling for multiple years in terms of on-track performance, and this year is much of the same. While officially being the worst car on the grid, Haas do not even look close to competing for any sort of points as it stands.

In comparison to the Williams team of 2019 and 2020, who were in a similar situation and are now competing for points on various occasions, with the likes of a potential future world champion in George Russell.

Now picture this, Mazepin leaves Haas at the end of the season and joins Aston Martin, heck, imagine he joined Mercedes. How would he perform in a car with greater potential than his own? The obvious answer to most fans would be that he wouldn't even survive half a season, but how do we know that for sure?

It is common for drivers to adjust to different cars and different teams at their own pace, in this scenario Mazepin is adjusting to a car at a slow rate, just like he did in Formula 2 before finding his grip and impressing in his second season. But it is

unlikely that he will mirror his past trends with the Haas F1 team, due to a poor car being handed to him for likely the next couple of years.