MOSCOW, July 31. /TASS/. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has once again ruled to suspend sanctions against Russian auto racer Nikita Mazepin, a spokesman for his team told TASS on Monday.

The CJEU ruled on March 2 to allow Mazepin to enter the European Union for negotiations with Formula 1 teams and cleared him to participate in F1 and other global racing series as well. However, the Council of the European Union ignored this ruling and extended sanctions against Mazepin for another term, which was challenged by Mazepin’s lawyers with the European Court of Justice again.

"In the new round, the Court upheld Nikita again, as there remains a need for interim measures to be taken to prevent serious and irreparable damage to the athlete," his team said. "The Council of the EU did not provide convincing evidence to the contrary. Nikita Mazepin remains entitled to enter the EU to qualify for teams, participate in the Formula 1 series and other competitions. He can also receive income in connection with racing activities and negotiate with sponsors."

According to Mazepin’s counsel Davide Rovetta and Aaron Bass, the CJEU’s second ruling exempting the Russian auto racer from sanctions was based on the fact that the Russian athlete was not involved in what is going on in Ukraine.

"The President of the General Court was not satisfied that ‘the restrictive measures <…> in respect of the applicant are founded on a sufficiently solid factual basis’ (para. 119) and reiterated that ‘the applicant is a young sportsman who is in no way involved in the aggression suffered by Ukraine and who is not engaged in any activity in economic sectors providing a substantial source of revenue to the Government of the Russian Federation" (para. 121)," they said in a statement.

Mazepin, 24, signed a multi-year contract with the Haas F1 Team in December 2020, becoming the fourth Russian racer to compete in the world’s most prestigious auto racing series, FIA Formula 1. During the 2021 F1 racing season, driving for Team Haas alongside Germany’s Mick Schumacher, who is the son of seven-time F1 World Champion Michael Schumacher, Mazepin earned the best result of his career, finishing in 14th place.

On March 5, 2022, the Haas FIA Formula One Team announced that it had terminated its contract with Mazepin over the situation in Ukraine. Later, the United Kingdom imposed sanctions against him and he was put on the EU blacklist.

On March 1, 2022, the governing body of motor sport, the FIA, allowed Russian and Belarusian auto racers to compete under a neutral flag and upon the signing of a special document laying restrictions on drivers.