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Haas’ Mazepin Says He’s Ready for Midfield Fight – Does He Mean in F1 2022 the Video Game?

A few days ago, I wrote a piece about how far Haas could go in the Constructors Standings this year, as a best-case scenario, and “somewhere in the midfield” was the best I could come up with. Leave it to Nikita Mazepin to get me to reconsider.
Haas F1 driver Nikita Mazepin 11 photos
Photo: Haas F1 Team / Facebook
Haas F1 driver Nikita MazepinHaas F1 driver Nikita MazepinHaas F1 driver Nikita MazepinHaas F1 driver Nikita MazepinHaas F1 driver Nikita MazepinHaas F1 driver Nikita MazepinHaas F1 driver Nikita MazepinHaas F1 driver Nikita MazepinHaas F1 driver Nikita MazepinHaas F1 driver Nikita Mazepin
The Haas driver was recently quoted by Autosport as saying that he feels “100% ready” to battle F1’s midfield teams this year, as long as Haas give him a car that is good enough.

When I pictured the U.S. outfit becoming a midfield team again, I did so while acknowledging all the promising signs regarding Mick Schumacher from 2021. The gap between the German and his Russian teammate was palpable last year, and for Mazepin to match Schumacher's pace, it would require a sizeable jump in terms of focus, consistency and probably talent too.

Mick Schumacher won the 2020 F2 Championship, whereas Mazepin finished fifth. He did show flashes in F2 that year, winning at Silverstone and Mugello, but overall, he was nowhere near as impressive as Yuki Tsunoda, Callum Ilott and of course, Schumacher.

Even so, the young Russian driver is confident in his craft, perhaps irrationally confident, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing in sports.

“I had a few good battles this year with some faster cars and I felt comfortable,” he said. “For me, mainly fighting with people, I need to know exactly where my rear wing ends and where my front wing ends, so I know exactly how to position my car next to them.”

That would be good, especially since he had multiple incidents where it looked as though he lacked some general awareness regarding his surroundings.

“Life in F1 isn't consistent to anyone. But we always knew what we were going into, and '22 is the year when we put things together. And I think I'm in a good place to do exactly that,” he added.

To be fair, it shouldn’t be that hard to improve on one of the most dreadful rookie campaigns in Formula 1 history. But the midfield? I just don't see it happening for him, at least not this year.
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About the author: Sergiu Tudose
Sergiu Tudose profile photo

Sergiu got to experience both American and European car "scenes" at an early age (his father drove a Ford Fiesta XR2 supermini in the 80s). After spending over 15 years at local and international auto publications, he's starting to appreciate comfort behind the wheel more than raw power and acceleration.
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