Nikita Mazepin says he has found a new "common approach" with his Haas team and applied a few changes that have helped him improve his performance and consistency out on the track, starting in Monaco.
Ahead of this weekend's round of racing in the Principality, Haas boss Guenther Steiner warned Mazepin and teammate Mick Schumacher to avoid Monaco's barriers and to focus first and foremost on accumulating mileage.
Many expected the spin prone Mazepin to neglect Steiner's directive in short order, but instead it was Schumacher who fell foul of the guidance, the young German twice encountering the barriers, with his heavy crash at the exit of Casino Square in FP3 depriving him of qualifying on Saturday afternoon.
Mazepin's weekend on the other hand has been as clean as whistle, with the Russian also outperforming his teammate for the first time this season, an achievement that finally put a smile on the 22-year-old's face.
©Haas
"I think he did a good job today," Steiner said after practice on Thursday.
"I spoke with him afterwards, and he was very happy. He said he was the happiest since he entered Formula 1 in the beginning of the season."
"That’s right," said Mazepin. "Gunther knows what it’s about, but I’ll keep it between us."
Mazepin would not elaborate on the changes he's made for this weekend, but he did mention a productive trip to Haas' base after the Spanish Grand Prix.
"The main thing is how I spent the week between Barcelona and here," he explained.
"After Spain, I went to England and spent several productive days with the team. We talked a lot, had meetings and found a common approach, and I hope this will continue in the future.
"I wouldn’t call it a new approach, but I did make some changes that had to be made.
"I know perfectly well what external factor I needed. I didn’t know if it would increase my speed, but I was sure that it would give me the confidence that I eventually got.
"I can’t say it feels like a weight off my shoulders, but it definitely allows me to have a positive attitude in anticipation of 2022."
©Haas
Assessing his qualifying session which he concluded P19, Mazepin said he enjoyed the exercise but just couldn't deliver the level of performance he displayed in free practice.
"We’re a little frustrated as it’s not the first weekend where we seem to be quite strong at various times in a session, then for qualifying our competitors are able to extract the most," he said
"I was wary of falling into that trap again as obviously FP3 went very well for us. I knew that we’ve been doing a good job consistently throughout the weekend, but we perhaps don’t have as much available when it’s really necessary.
"I know that everyone on the team is doing their upmost best to extract from the car and we know where we stand. I think everyone did a great job today.
"Qualifying around here in Monaco is just very exciting. I’ve really enjoyed driving here, the whole atmosphere is very cool."
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