Shwartzman Leaves Ferrari Role for IndyCar & Abandons Russian Ties
Nov.21 - Robert Shwartzman is no longer a Russian driver, according to former Haas racer Nikita Mazepin.
At the outbreak of the Ukraine-Russia conflict, Mazepin and his billionaire father's brand Uralkali were expelled from Haas and essentially banned from Formula 1.
However, as fellow Russian Shwartzman, who like Mazepin is 25, was actually born in Israel, he simply switched his racing license from Russian to Israeli and continued his motor racing career.
Shwartzman is now leaving his role as a Ferrari test and reserve driver to race for the new Italian team Prema in the premier US-based Indycar series in 2025.
Mazepin says he has given up his right to be called a Russian driver.
"Unfortunately, I cannot call Shwartzman our driver, because he made his choice and now competes for another country," he told Russian specialist outlet autosport.com.ru.
"If you asked me about Israeli drivers, then I would talk about him. As for Russian drivers, the number of outstanding Russians is currently at its peak."
In fact, he thinks that if F1 and the wider world opened up to Russia once again, plenty of Russians would thrive in all sorts of international categories.
"Are our athletes ready to be the best in the world motorsport arena?" Mazepin asked rhetorically. "Definitely yes.
"Is the world community ready for that, and will political regulators allow them to do this? In my opinion, today they are not. Unfortunately," he concluded.
✅ Check out more posts with related topics:
