Nikita Mazepin is confident that he won't be a target for reprimands from the stewards during his debut season in F1, despite getting into trouble for some previous on-track incidents in his career. The Russian driver has been involved in controversial moments in the past; in 2016 he received a race ban in Formula 3 after a physical altercation with rival Callum Ilott, and during the 2020 F2 season Mazepin was handed a suspended penalty for his post-race conduct at Spa when he drove into the P2 board in parc ferme, sending it flying close to where winner Yuki Tsunoda was about to walk past. Despite his past history, Mazepin does not believe there will be further problems like this when makes his Formula 1 debut with Haas. "It's not something that I fear because I'm confident that's not going to happen," the F1 rookie told RacingNews365.com among others when asked if he fears being a target for steward reprimands. "I take a lot of time to go through the regulations, study them, understand where that fine line is. "I think as a racing driver, like one of the great racing drivers said, if you don't go for a gap that exists, you're no longer a racing driver, and I think this is applicable to every driver in F1. Because to get there, you do need to be willing to take every opportunity, because if you will not be doing it somebody else will. "You obviously sometimes overstep that line, and it's not up to me to decide, it's the stewards' decision. Everyone's got a job in F1, and I'm not a steward so I respect their decision on some of those moves. "But I'm confident to say that you won't be seeing that in F1 in the coming years, because there's a very different driving style needed when you're fighting for the championship and potentially fighting further back down the grid." Mazepin will partner fellow Formula 2 graduate Mick Schumacher in 2021 as both make their debuts in Formula 1 with the Haas team.
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