Formula 1 is so ridiculously expensive that no one can really fathom the cost of team ownership, and getting a driver like Nikita Mazepin to the start is often a harsh reality for underfunded teams.
Bernie Ecclestone, former F1 Supremo, identified the tax realities required for Haas F1 during development and early operating costs.
“If someone wants to be competitive, they have to come in and spend a billion dollars over four years, like Red Bull did,” – Bernie Ecclestone on Haas F1 start-up costs, March 21, 2016
Most of the people I know can’t afford these kinds of start-up and running costs. Pay driver “.
There is no absolute dictionary definition of a “pay driver”, but in simple terms it is an F1 driver whose driver’s seat is not based on merit or skill, but rather on his or her ability to make money for the team. To fill the team’s coffers, the “Pay Driver” can use his sponsorship money or his personal assets.
A current example of a paid driver is Nikita Mazepin from Haas F1. Mazepin is the son of Russian businessman Dmitry Mazepin who owns Uralchem Integrated Chemical Company, which has an estimated net worth of $ 1.3 billion. Uralchem sponsors the Haas F1 team and based on Nikita Mazepin’s recent performance I can assume he is a figurehead for paid drivers.
It’s early on the 2021 F1 calendar, there have been five races since that post, but Mazepin has had less than stellar results in its first season:
- Best result: 17th in Imola and Monaco
- Best qualifying: 19th in Bahrain, Imola and Monaco
- Zero points in the driver and constructor standings.
- He never finished on the leading lap; his best performance was two laps back.
- In his first F1 race, he crashed on the third corner of the first lap.
I can’t imagine keeping your job in a profession with such results, but I’m realistic about Mazepin’s position in life and that he’s a major source of money for a team without major sponsors. We all know someone who was given life because of their position in life and in motorsport.
But not every paid driver is an overly authorized shunt waiting to happen. Yes, Lance Stroll drives for his father’s team, but he has shown promising results over the course of his career with three podiums and one pole position. This is what distinguishes a salary driver from someone with financial support: results.
Motorsport has had a lot of paid drivers over the years, but for any Niki Lauda there are a few cats that would have served better to play F1 2020 on the PS4. Here’s my take on the worst paid drivers in F1 history:
The post Nikita Mazepin and the worst paid drivers in F1 history first appeared on monter-une-startup.
