Representatives for Russian F1 driver Nikita Mazepin have denied that the 22-year-old was tossed out of a Mexico nightclub in a dispute with security staff at the weekend.
In footage circulated on social media, Haas driver Mazepin appeared to be seen in heated discussions with at the party venue.
Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo claimed Mazepin had been kicked out of the club due to ‘unknown reasons’, but a spokesperson for the racer has now attempted to clear up the issue.
“If you look at the actual video, you can clearly see no one is being kicked out of the club. It was the exact opposite,” the representative told TASS.
“Nikita booked a table at the afterparty with the blessing of hosts Red Bull and invited the team to join him to celebrate the final race of the season for one of the team’s race engineers.
“Nikita was in the club but, when some of the team members showed up, security didn’t let them in. Nikita spoke to the security at the door and the mix-up was cleared up.
“Everyone had a great time at the club for several hours after the video was filmed.”
Fellow racing stars George Russell and Alex Albon were also said to have been at the venue.
Some fans online had reveled in the footage, keen to take yet more potshots at a driver whose presence in the F1 ranks has been criticized in some quarters.
Mazepin is in his debut season with Haas, where his father – Russian chemicals billionaire Dmitry Mazepin – is a major sponsor.
Mazepin was caught up in a ‘groping row’ with an Instagram model before his F1 career had even started, and has endured a challenging time on the track.
The Russian finished at the back of the field of those who finished the race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City on Sunday.
He is joint-bottom of the overall standings, having failed to pick up a point from 18 rounds of racing, and has cruelly been dubbed ‘Mazespin’ by some fans due to his mishaps on track.
