Mazepin makes statement about strange action in last lap of Baku

Nikita Mazepin is not making many friends in the Formula 1 world so far this season. In Bahrain, he caused a yellow flag spin that put out of action the very drivers he had just overtaken. He also blocked Sergio Perez when he was in the lead, and as the icing on the cake, on the last lap in Baku, he almost pushed teammate Mick Schumacher into the wall when the latter tried to overtake him.

Harsh criticism

Mazepin's action has already been met with harsh criticism, including from Ralf Schumacher who called for a heavy penalty for the young Russian, as well as Mick Schumacher who wondered if Mazepin wanted him "dead." Mazepin responded to the incident a few days later: "In Formula 1, everyone is an elite driver, so no one is trying to scare anyone. Baku was just a misunderstanding based on my experience and my expectations of what Mick was doing," the Haas driver stated, as quoted by news agency GMM.

Mazepin's defense

Mazepin carries the argument that his teammate chose a rather strange place to overtake him. He admits that his defense was too late, but after seeing Mick's overtaking attempt simply returned to his original line. "Normally drivers use the inside to overtake because you can brake better there and yes, I started late with the blocking maneuver, but everyone does that. I had no idea Mick wanted to stay on the outside. When I saw him in the mirrors I immediately went back to my line, because if I had continued we would have crashed," the Russian said.

Last lap

"But that moment was just a misunderstanding, I thought Mick was going to go left, as with the rest of the overtakes in the race, but he went right," he added. Still, the fact that the action was initiated just before the finish flag also played a role: "Probably the timing was important too, it was the last lap and I wasn't expecting it. But I assure you I didn't want to scare anyone," Mazepin concluded.