GP3 stepping stone
Nikita Mazepin's path to the FIA Formula 2 Championship ran through the 2018 GP3 Series, where he raced for ART Grand Prix and announced himself as a serious prospect. He won four races that year, more than any other driver on the grid, yet finished runner-up in the standings on 198 points, just 16 points adrift of champion Anthoine Hubert. It was the kind of campaign that earns a single-seater graduate a promotion, and it carried him straight up to Formula 2 for 2019.
Formula 2 2019 — a tough rookie year
Mazepin stayed with ART Grand Prix for his Formula 2 debut, lining up alongside Nyck de Vries, who would go on to win the title. Where his teammate dominated, Mazepin struggled to find consistency, and his season is best remembered for the wrong reasons: he caused an accident with Nobuharu Matsushita in the Sochi sprint race. He closed the year 18th in the standings with just 11 points, a chastening introduction to the category.
Formula 2 2020 — the breakthrough
The 2020 season told a very different story. Mazepin switched to the new Hitech Grand Prix outfit and partnered Luca Ghiotto, and the change unlocked his pace. His first podium came at the Hungaroring with a second place, and he converted that momentum into maiden victories: he won the feature race at Silverstone and added another feature-race win at Mugello. Across the campaign he stood on the podium six times.
There was controversy mixed in with the results. On the final lap of the Belgian feature race at Spa, Mazepin pushed Carlin's Yuki Tsunoda wide and was handed a five-second time penalty that cost him the win — a flashpoint that summed up the aggressive, divisive reputation that followed him. He finished the season fifth in the Formula 2 standings on 164 points, a major step up from his rookie year.
After F2
Mazepin's two F2 victories and top-five championship finish, combined with backing tied to the Uralkali sponsorship, earned him a Formula 1 seat. He graduated to the Haas F1 Team for the 2021 season, racing alongside Mick Schumacher.