Who is Nikita Mazepin's father? All you need to know about the Russian oligarch
Nikita Mazepin's F1 career with Haas is over. The American team has confirmed it has parted ways with the Russian driver as well as their title sponsors, a company by the name of Uralkali. It was a reactionary decision by the American team after Russia launched an unprovoked and dastardly invasion into neighboring Ukraine.
Uralkali is a subsidiary of Uralchem, a multi-billion dollar Russian mineral fertilizer company owned and controlled by Nikita Mazepin's father, Dmitry.
According to Forbes, the 53-year-old is one of the wealthiest people in the world with an estimated net worth of nearly $1.8 billion in 2021.
Dmitry Mazepin was born in Minsk, present day Belarus. As a child, he attended Minsk Suvorov Military School before going on to pursue higher education at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations.
Prior to acquiring nearly a fifth of Uralchem from billionaire Suleiman Kerimov, Mazepin senior reportedly worked as a language interpreter in Afghanistan in the late 1980s.
I'm not sure if F1 folks realize the gravity of this Haas situation. The owner of Uralkali, the mining company that is the title sponsor of Haas, is Dmitry Mazepin, Nikitas father. He attended a meeting of "Russian Business Circles" organized by Vladimir Putin yesterday. #F1 https://t.co/eeLTosq0rq
Mazepin senior founded his own company in 2004 and used it to buy stock in chemical plants. He would later merge those assets into Uralchem.
What is the connection between Nikita Mazepin's father and Russian President Vladimir Putin?
In addition to his financial and business dealings, Dmitry Mazepin is also alleged to be a member of Russian president Vladimir Putin's inner circle.
A tweet from the Kremlin's official Twitter handle showed Mazepin in a personal meeting with Putin days before the aforementioned invasion of Ukraine by Russian armed forces.
#Kremlin: Meeting with Uralchem CEO Dmitry Mazepin bit.ly/3tphbAg https://t.co/IKmONQZ31X
Mazepin, along with other Russian oligarchs like Chelsea football club owner Roman Abramovich, have been suspected of using their financial clout to back the Kremlin. Many have also alleged these oligarchs of using sport to launder money.
As the sanctions and penalties imposed on Russia grow, the influence of these oligarchs could be checked in unprecedented fashion. Expulsions from the SWIFT network of banking transactions have already sent the Russian rouble into a tailspin.
This would no doubt have prompted fears about funding creeping up for all teams and entities sponsored by the Russian and his company.
Along with Haas, the F2 feeder team Hitech GP will also be hunting for new sponsors to fund them going into the upcoming season of racing.