F1 | Russian GP contract terminated; no more races in Russia in the future
Following on from developments of the war between Russia and Ukraine, Formula 1 has confirmed that, not only is the 2022 Russian GP cancelled, no more races will take place in the country on the future.
After firstly announcing, last week, the cancellation of this year’s Russian Grand Prix, albeit in a carefully worded statement that opened the door for interpretation, even from organisers of the Sochi race, F1 has finally confirmed that not only the 2022 event is off, but also future races planned in the country.
The Russian GP has taken place in the Sochi Autodrom, alongside the Winter Olympics 2014 site, since 2014. A move was planned for the race to be held at St. Petersburg from 2023, in the Igora Drive circuit, but is now off because of the current situation involving Russia and Ukraine.
In a short statement, Formula One has made clear that it doesn’t plan to run any race in Russia for the foreseeable future:
“Formula 1 can confirm it has terminated its contract with the Russian Grand Prix promoter meaning Russia will not have a race in the future.”
The unprovoked conflict between the two countries has resulted in many sanctions against Russia, be it in political terms, economical, or in this case sporting events. The situation is especially critical for the Haas F1 Team, whose title sponsors – Uralkali – are a major Russian company owned by Dmitry Mazepin, father of the team’s driver Nikita Mazepin. With the developments of the sanctions, it seems Haas will lose its main partner just before the season gets underway.
The team ran a plain white livery on the final day of testing in Barcelona last week, stripped of any Uralkali branding, but has declined to comment further on its agreements with partners at this moment in time.
Another big complication of the matters is the ability of driver Nikita Mazepin to fulfil his obligations with the team. His future in the sport is in serious danger, given several countries are banning Russian drivers and sports people from their competitions – notably, Mazepin would be unable to race in the British GP, at Silverstone, if he is to stay at the team.
The Russian event faced stiff criticism from 4-time world champion Sebastian Vettel and reigning champion Max Verstappen, before being cancelled completely.
