Haas has publicly condemned its 2021 driver, Nikita Mazepin following a post he made on his Instagram account.

In the brief video clip, the Russian, who is a passenger in the front seat of a car, is seen reaching into the back where he appears to touch a woman inappropriately, despite her obvious discomfort.

The post has caused outrage on social media as a result, to the extent that the hashtag #wesaynotomazepin is trending.

"Haas F1 Team does not condone the behaviour of Nikita Mazepin in the video recently posted on his social media," said the American team this morning. "Additionally, the very fact that the video was posted on social media is also abhorrent to Haas F1 Team.

"The matter is being dealt with internally and no further comment shall be made at this time."

In reaction to the backlash, and Haas' statement, Mazepin issued an apology via Twitter.

"I am sorry for the offence I have rightly caused and to the embarrassment I Have brought to Haas F1 Team," he wrote.

"I have to hold myself to a higher standard as a Formula 1 driver and I acknowledge I have let myself and many people down. I promise I will learn from this."

The incident comes days after the Russian was hit with two penalties for his actions on-track antics during the final round of the F2 championship, and which left Haas team boss, Guenther Steiner admitted that he would effectively have his work cut out controlling the Russian.

However, at a time Mazepin is already being accused of racism and homophobia on social media, Haas faces some difficult decisions, especially if - as we have heard from a reliable source - the team has been sold to the Russian's father.

Indeed, as it pushes its own #WeRaceAsOne message, F1 bosses will also be watching the situation with concern.

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by Superbird70, 10/12/2020 2:12

"@ARL it's not Rich Energy but MisogEnergy"

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2. Posted by kenji, 10/12/2020 0:21

"@ ARL Apparently buttoned up and levity deprived. Everyone is entitled to an opinion except those who are simply not prepared to let minorities determine their future without intelligent debate. As for the Mazepin incident it was apparently nothing like it was portrayed by a voracious social media. It wasn't very clever of Mazepin and that is quite apparent but as for the rush to virtuous judgement by the 'woke' masses....enough said. F1 needs desperately to be free of political statements. Have a nice day."

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3. Posted by meatball, 09/12/2020 23:31

"Haas seems to be a magnet for terrible bedfellows, oops I mean Comrades... this man-child... another son of a Billionaire and a russian one to boot... Dmitry Mazepin sure sounds like stand up guy. The factory team members have probably already had a family member kidnapped so they perform their duties better. 2 years tops and this team is belly up having been gutted in the process."

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4. Posted by Bill Hopgood, 09/12/2020 18:36

"I've not seen the video and am not going to go searching for it and only have this report to go by.

Young Nikita needs to get himself sorted out and make sure he kicks around with the right crowd to advise him on the best steps for his career and indeed life.

We are, to some degree, the average of the five people we spend the most time with, combined with our early upbringing.

I cannot guess of his character having never spent any time with hime, but if Mazepin the younger does not get himself (dad will probably do this for him) a decent minder or two then I expect his career to be cut rather short.
"

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5. Posted by ARL, 09/12/2020 15:00

"It can only get "better" for Haas if it turns out that Nikita proves to be the clean shaven love child of William Storey and comes with personal sponsorship from Rich Energy. As for the rubbish spouted by kenji, words fail me."

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6. Posted by kenji, 09/12/2020 11:42

"What has happened to the world....gender bias, cancel culture,homophobia etc etc etc. It seems as though not only is everyone a victim but even conventional science based biology and freedom of speech and the very English as is spoken is under threat by minorities every minute of every day. Grrrrr. One must rebel against this push purely and simply in the name of sanity. Mazepin sounds like one entitled dude who is bucking the new conventions and now finds himself in a spot of trouble. So he touched a young woman inappropriately it is claimed. It is also claimed that this self same young woman is not aggrieved but is in fact a friend of Mazepin's and is neither upset or angry. Who really cares if young people play around a bit. Young people are exactly that...young [ uninhibited ] people and young people fool around. What should be of concern is not what he does off track but what he does on it. He should've been black flagged last Sunday and he should also have received a race ban. Actions like his need to be slammed immediately. "

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Haas condemns Mazepin following social media post

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