Russian driver Nikita Mazepin is going to file a lawsuit against Haas, the Formula 1 team that fired him in early March. Mazepin (23) claims that he still owes his salary from Haas. “It seems to me that an employer has to pay the salary at least until the moment of dismissal and probably also some kind of severance payment,” the driver said in an interview with the Russian media group RBC.
Haas decided in early March to cut all ties with Mazepin and the Russian main sponsor Uralkali because of the Russian military invasion of Ukraine. Uralkali had become the main sponsor of Haas a year earlier. The Russian fertilizer company is partly owned by Mazepin’s wealthy father.
Haas replaced the Russian for Danish driver Kevin Magnussen. “The team has not fulfilled contractual obligations,” said Mazepin. “We had two independent contracts. The breaking of the agreement with Uralkali did not directly affect my place on the team. They made two separate decisions. I still have not seen my money, so we are going to court. I have the required documents already submitted.”
Mazepin did not manage to take a single World Cup point last year. Magnussen is already at 15 points.