Nikita Dmitryevich Mazepin is a Russian professional racing driver who most recently competed in the 2023 Asian Le Mans Series driving for 99 Racing.
34 Facts About Nikita Mazepin
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Nikita Mazepin is the son of Dmitry Mazepin, a Belarusian-Russian oligarch businessman who is the former core shareholder and former chairman of Uralchem.
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On 9 December 2020, Mazepin posted an Instagram story in which he appeared to inappropriately grope a woman's breasts.
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Nikita Mazepin released an apology, stating "I have to hold myself to a higher standard as a Formula 1 driver and I acknowledge I have let myself and many people down", but the apology was deleted nine days later.
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In March 2021, Nikita Mazepin reiterated that he understood his actions were wrong.
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The woman in the video defended Nikita Mazepin and labelled his actions as a joke between the two.
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Nikita Mazepin quickly moved up the ranks, driving in the CIK-FIA Karting European Championship in the KF3 class in just his second year of competition.
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Nikita Mazepin made his car racing debut in the MRF Challenge Formula 2000 at the end of 2014, driving in the first round of the series and grabbing his first podium in just his second race of his single-seater career.
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Nikita Mazepin then made the switch to compete in the Toyota Racing Series with ETEC Motorsport, where he finished 18th in the drivers' standings.
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Nikita Mazepin followed that up by racing for Josef Kaufmann Racing in the Formula Renault Northern European Cup alongside Louis Deletraz, Kevin Jorg and fellow rookie Dries Vanthoor.
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Nikita Mazepin scored one podium with a third-place finish at the Red Bull Ring, and ended up twelfth in the championship.
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In 2016, Nikita Mazepin competed in the 2016 FIA Formula 3 European Championship for Hitech Grand Prix.
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Nikita Mazepin scored four points-scoring finishes and finished 20th in the championship, last of all full-time entrants.
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Nikita Mazepin improved significantly compared to his first year, scoring 108 points and finishing on the podium on three occasions.
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Nikita Mazepin finished in tenth, one place behind teammate Ralf Aron.
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Nikita Mazepin moved to GP3 in 2018 to race for ART Grand Prix alongside Callum Ilott, Jake Hughes and eventual champion Anthoine Hubert.
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Nikita Mazepin won four races, the most of any driver that year, and finished second in the championship, only 16 points behind Hubert.
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In 2019, Nikita Mazepin progressed to Formula 2 to partner Nyck de Vries at ART Grand Prix.
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Nikita Mazepin's season was marked by causing an accident with Nobuharu Matsushita in the sprint race at the Sochi Autodrom.
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Nikita Mazepin was named test driver of Sahara Force India in 2016 and made his Formula One testing debut in the in-season test at Silverstone, where he achieved a personal best lap time of 1:31.561.
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Nikita Mazepin stayed in that role for the following two seasons, racking up 100 laps at the Hungaroring in 2017 and 51 in 2018 at the same track.
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Nikita Mazepin joined Haas F1 Team for 2021 on a multi-year deal, partnering Mick Schumacher.
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Nikita Mazepin chose the number 9 as his permanent racing number.
24.
Nikita Mazepin competed under a neutral flag representing the Russian Automobile Federation in the 2021 and 2022 Formula One World Championships after the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld a World Anti-Doping Agency ban on Russia competing at World Championships in December 2020 due to state-sponsored doping of Russian athletes.
25.
At the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix in Spa-Francorchamps, which only lasted two laps behind the Safety Car due to heavy rain, Nikita Mazepin recorded the fastest lap of the race on the second lap; however, as the race was suspended permanently thereafter, the official results were taken from the end of the race's first full lap, and as a consequence, Nikita Mazepin's fastest lap award was rescinded.
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Nikita Mazepin missed the season finale at Yas Marina due to a positive COVID-test on race day; he was not replaced for the event.
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Nikita Mazepin ended his debut season 21st in the standings, with no points scored throughout the year.
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Nikita Mazepin was contracted to compete for Haas in the 2022 Formula One World Championship, however on 5 March, Haas terminated both his contract and Uralkali's title sponsorship as part of the larger global response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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Nikita Mazepin expressed disappointment at the decision, remarking on social media that his "ongoing willingness to accept the conditions proposed in order to continue were completely ignored".
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Nikita Mazepin stated that he sees "tremendous risks in saying anything at all" regarding the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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In July 2022, Nikita Mazepin sued Haas in a Swiss court for unpaid wages.
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Nikita Mazepin made his rally debut at the Ladoga Trophy in June 2022 before competing in the Silk Way Rally a month later, driving a Can-Am in the T3 category for Snag Racing.
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Nikita Mazepin won his class with a stage victory in the seventh leg.
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In 2023, Nikita Mazepin returned to international motorsport, making his endurance racing debut in the Asian Le Mans Series with 99 Racing.