Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft was labelled “harsh” by colleague Karun Chandhok after making a hilarious but brutal dig about a former Formula 1 flop. It happened during the broadcaster’s live coverage of the Austrian Grand Prix when, during a lull in the on-track action, ‘Crofty’ chose to offer an explanation to viewers about why there were so many black marks on the Spielberg track.
As Croft explained, as part of the entertainment for fans this weekend, several ‘Red Bull Drift Shows’ are on the billing. One 10-minute demonstration of drifting prowess took place on Friday afternoon with two more shows on Saturday, one ahead of final practice and another before qualifying.
But as he got to that explanation, Croft had a cheeky dig at former F1 racer Nikita Mazepin. The Russian driver had only a brief stint in F1 with Haas. Given the seat as part of a major sponsorship deal with Uralkali, Mazepin’s oligarch father Dmitry’s fertiliser company, he failed to score a point in his one and only season on the grid.
He was due to get a second, but Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine just a few weeks before the 2022 season began saw Uralkali and Mazepin dumped. But even without that, his performance levels were rarely strong enough and he also developed a reputation for spins and crashes, including the nickname among some fans online of ‘Mazespin’.
Croft referenced that reputation as he said: “There are a whole load of black marks, you’ve got it down the main straight as well. It look like Nikita Mazepin has been doing some demonstrations.” That comment prompted a laugh from co-commentator Chandhok, who then replied: “Harsh, Crofty!”
There were no immediate regrets from the Sky Sports regular, who replied: “Harsh, but fair,” while chuckling himself. He then explained: “What we’ve got is a load of drifters this weekend, giving entertainment to the crowd,” before finally adding: “Apologies to Nikita Mazepin, I’m so sorry.”
The clip of what Croft said went viral on social media in the hours afterwards. “Not Mazepin still catching pelters,” one fan replied. Another wrote: “I laughed when Crofty said this, but it’s true.” And a third admitted they were caught off guard by the comment as they said: “I spat my drink out, it was completely out of nowhere.” Not everyone was pleased, though, including one viewer who wrote: “Quite funny but, in reality, it was pretty unprofessional and disrespectful if we’re being honest.”
Like his father, Mazepin was sanctioned by the European Union over alleged ties to the Russian government. Those sanctions were dropped in 2024 after he won his legal battle at the Court of Justice of the EU, though said he would not pursue an F1 return. He has since competed in rally-raid and GT3 motorsport events, having been allowed to return to international motorsport since being freed from sanctions.