The couple are now teammates at Haas, but have played against each other regularly in junior categories on their way to F1.
But their first encounter on the track caught Schumacher’s eye as he remembers being advised to keep an eye on Mazepin’s tactics when they were competing in a kart race in Italy.
“We have known each other since 2013, when we are team-mates at TonyKart,” said Schumacher, who sat next to Mazepin. “Shortly before that, I remember we had a race together in which you drove with Zanardi [team] in La Conca.
“That was the first time I noticed you because it actually … I don’t know, one of my teammates said I have to be careful when I ride with you because … [laughs] in terms of combat he was quite aggressive!
“Then in 2014 we obviously had another year in which he was in KF2, I was in KF3 that year. And after that, I think we always had a couple of races together, a couple of championships together, so we always saw each other.
“I think the respect is there. Of course we’re going to work really closely together now that it’s just the two of us. So it will be interesting to see how it goes this year. “
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While the first impressions of each other may have been different, the two seem to get along quite well at Haas – Mazepin praises Schumacher’s attitude.
“I have a lot of respect for him as a racing driver,” said the Russian. “I also like him very much as a person.
“There are different people in motorsport and some of them are pretty difficult to reach. But Mick is just the opposite, so I’m lucky that he’s obviously my teammate.
“I couldn’t choose, but it’s nice to have a nice guy around you. And I also think this is a very good option for a team because if you have no negativity and both of you are just moving forward it can help us to be much higher up than we could have been on our own. “
Additional reporting from Oleg Karpov
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