Speaking in a print media session ahead of the 2026 F1 Malaysia round, Esteban Ocon talked about his exit from Haas for the first time.
On Wednesday, it was confirmed that the 2021 Hungarian GP race winner would be leaving the team at the end of the year. Brazilian and F2 championship leader Rafael Câmara is favourite to take the second seat alongside Ollie Bearman for 2027.
Parts inconsistency not the reason Esteban Ocon is leaving Haas F1 Team
Back in Austria, the 30-year-old French driver first started to talk about parts being inconsistent. His VF-26 would not have the load and performance of Ollie Bearman’s package as he lacked rear downforce at times.
Since the summer break, he has shown his speed and ability with a healthier car. Strong weekends in Zandvoort, Madrid and Baku have vindicated Esteban Ocon’s statements. Ayao Komatsu and Ollie Bearman have also publicly agreed with him and confirmed issues on both cars through the European summer, although the one-time race winner suffered more often.
Ocon spoke about his efforts to help the team find issues and work on solutions to fix these problems.
“No, I don’t think that [parts inconsistency] has anything to do with that [leaving]. I’ve just been doing my job trying to get the cars to where they should be.
“At the end of the day, it has benefited everyone in the team because we see the result of the hard work that we’ve put in.
“Me pointing the fingers at the current issues, obviously I was the first one to experience that. It took us a few races to realise that it was actually there. But we all realise, since quite a while now, that this has happened. It’s clear in everyone’s mind, in the engineering office.”
Pushed on when it became clear the door at Haas F1 was closing, Esteban Ocon did not want to go into details. However, he did reveal the reasons were not linked to his performance level over the last two seasons.
“Again, I don’t have any further to comment on this. I’m looking ahead, not at the past. I’m not going to comment on the reasons or what could be.
“I know the reasons. I’m not going to share them. But the reasons are not performance.”
A frustrating situation
In Baku last weekend, the Frenchman was in feisty form both behind the wheel and the microphone as he talked about how good he truly feels he is.
It is not the first time he has been in this situation in Formula 1. He was replaced by Lance Stroll at Racing Point for the 2019 season. Ocon went on to be a reserve for Mercedes, before joining Renault in 2020.
Despite his displeasure at losing his Haas F1 seat, Esteban Ocon is hopeful and looking at potential other opportunities in the sport. Staying in Formula 1 is his only interest right now.
“It is frustrating because it’s not really the way it should be.
“I’m not going to go into detail on what happened in the past. I’m looking ahead and looking at the future. That’s what’s important.
“I deserve to be here. I put in the hard work.
“We have benefitted from finding out all these issues very early, since I joined the team. It has been very good for everyone.
“Of course, I don’t think I deserve to have this for the future. As I said, there are opportunities all the time in Formula 1. That’s what I’m looking at. I’m looking at the future, not the past.”
