Haas: 2021 livery under scrutiny
This Thursday, the World Anti-Doping Agency will announce its verdict on the HAAS F1 team's design for 2021.
The 2021 season has not yet started, but the American team has already managed to attract attention, and not necessarily in a good way. Firstly, following the antics of its Russian driver which had to be corrected through press releases, and now, it is the colors of the Haas that raise questions.
A livery in the colors of the disputed Russian flag.
Following the doping scandal orchestrated by the Russian federation during the Olympic Games in which Russia was the host country in 2014, the country was banned from entering its athletes into sports competitions for two years.
Thus, these Russian competitors must compete under a neutral flag at the Olympic Games or world championships. Nikita Mazepin, one of the two official drivers of the team, is therefore affected by this ban since the FIA adheres to the global anti-doping code.
However, if Mazepin is in F1 in 2021 it is thanks to his sponsor, who is none other than his father through Uralkali. The mining company is moreover more than just a simple sponsor, it is the title sponsor of the team now called Uralkali Haas F1 Team. The American team has succumbed to financial imperatives, and is now “directed” by Mr. Mazepin’s “petroroubles”. We therefore find a livery strongly inspired by the Russian flag as we could discover it in this presentation of the colors of the future VF-21.
The boss is having a hard time convincing
Günther Steiner, iconic team principal of the HAAS team, said that his team did not try to bypass the WADA ban: « We validated this livery last year, well before WADA legislated on the Russian flag. It is certain that we cannot use the Russian flag as such, however, we can place its colors on a car. It is the athlete who is not allowed to wear the colors of the Russian flag and not the team, and it happens that Haas is an American team. »
Steiner also claims to be in contact with the FIA and asserts that he does not need the approval of these bodies to choose his design. A defensive position that clearly shows that this livery is on probation. It will be interesting to see which colors will be adopted this weekend in Bahrain, for the first winter tests.
